Frequently Asked Questions
From OpenEvsys
General Questions Regarding OpenEvSys
Who created OpenEvSys?
OpenEvSys was created by HURIDOCS using a grant from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We have been working on ways to standardize and organize information collected by human rights organizations for over 20 years. Through the development of standardized vocabularies and methodologies in collaboration with hundreds of informatics specialists, activists, statisticians and researchers HURIDOCS created the Events approach to documenting human rights violations. OpenEvSys is a digital implementation of this approach.
Who developed OpenEvSys?
OpenEvSys was developed by HURIDOCS in collaboration with Respere, a software company which works in the humanitarian sector (http://www.respere.com). Respere won HURIDOCS's public call for tenders in 2008.
What is SAHANA?
SAHANA is an award winning, free, open source disaster management platform. It is used by governments and non-governmental organisations during a humanitarian crisis or natural disaster, to manage and share information about aid agency operations, refugee camps and shelter needs, missing persons and other sorts of information. It was developed to respond to the information sharing needs in Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the 2004 Tsunami. It's pretty cool, so give it a try.
OpenEvSys uses parts of the underlying code that powers SAHANA, but also makes many changes and improvements to this (which in turn, may strengthen the SAHANA software). The OpenEvSys developers, Respere, are a core part of the management, software development and implementation community of SAHANA.
Can we modify OpenEvSys?
Yes, you may modify OpenEvSys anyway you wish, because OpenEvSys is free and open source. For more information, refer to "Copyright and licensing."
When we have a problem with OpenEvSys, who do we contact to fix it?
If you experience any issues with OpenEvSys, contact HURIDOCS by either calling us, emailing us or submitting a "bug" at https://bugs.launchpad.net
We will do our best to help you get OpenEvSys back up and running as quickly as possible. In addition, you can find a large amount of documentation and help here at http://www.openevsys.org
Can I use OpenEvSys without a mouse?
Not completely, and we know this is an issue. OpenEvSys has some keyboard shortcuts/access keys to speed up navigation and repetitive tasks. However, we make some use of JavaScript to improve the user interface, so certain functionality is not yet fully accessible solely through the keyboard. We are working on this.
OpenEvSys doesn't do something I want it to. What can I do about it?
If there are certain features or functionality your organization wants that OpenEvSys does not offer out of the box, you have quite a few options:
- Contact HURIDOCS and we will attempt to help you do what you originally wanted to with the features that already exist within OpenEvSys.
- Check the OpenEvSys roadmap and blueprints to see if we are already planning on building what you want in the future
- Because OpenEvSys is open source and its licence allows for modifications, you can hire a programmer to implement the specific features your organization requires. We would love to see these changes, so let us know what you do with it!
Where can I find out what improvements are going to be made to OpenEvSys in the future?
All information regarding OpenEvSys can be found at http://www.openevsys.org. In addition, you may sign up for our mailing list where we will inform you of any updates or changes.
Can I use OpenEvSys whilst I have Facebook open in another tab on my browser?
Yes, OpenEvSys will not have conflicting issues with any other open websites. But your boss may have some issues with you for wasting time on Facebook.
Why isn't your website cool?
Good point. For the meantime, it's informative (we hope). Want to cool-i-fy it? Get in touch.
F.A.Q. Installation of OpenEvSys
OpenEvSys doesn't install properly, or won't connect to the database on my WestHost webserver
It might be because the version of MySQL installed by WestHost does not have innoDB support enabled by default. This page might help you resolve that problem.
F.A.Q. Events Standard Formats
What is an Event?
An Event is something that happens, with a beginning and an end, and which progresses until its logical conclusion. It can be a single act, a series of related acts, or a combination of related acts happening together. For an event to be included in human rights monitoring, at least one act that it contains should be qualified as a human rights violation (e.g. arbitrary arrest, which is a violation of the right to liberty), or be akin or similar to such (e.g. legal arrest). The term Act is a single piece of movement or action, usually involving force. Usually, an act is committed by a person (an individual or a group) against another, in which case it is referred to as an act of commission. Act can also mean the non-performance of an expected or required movement or action, in which case it is referred to as an act of omission.
What is a Person?
A Person is an individual or a group who is involved in or related somehow to an event.
What are the roles that a Person can have in an Event?
- Victim - The Victim is the person (individual or group) who is the object of an act.
- Source - Source is the person (individual or group) who provides information on the event and/or its elements.
- Intervening Party - Intervening party is the person (individual or group) who intervenes in an event, such as to aid a victim, or to seek to stop an ongoing violation.
- Perpetrator - The Perpetrator is the person (individual or group) who commits an act that constitutes a violation. Perpetrators can be state or non-state entities. The means used could be concrete arms such as guns, or more abstract processes such as lawmaking.
What is a field?
A field is where you give in information. It can range from text (like a name) to a date (like the day an act began). OpenEvSys contains multiple fields to completely describe an event in a structured manner, most of which are optional to fill out.
Each standard format is made up of a variable number of fields, in which the data elements are recorded. The various fields can be categorised into three general types according to the kind of data they hold.
- Fields for factual and descriptive data - These are fields that give the what, who, where, when and how. Examples are personal data of the victim or the description of an event.
- Fields for analytical data - These are fields used to contain information that is arrived at after some analysis, and thus involves judgement. They are often used to generate statistics to show trends and patterns. For instance, an organisation may want to categorise the types of events it has monitored. The categories used for this field are often context-dependent. Included in this type of fields are fields that denote status. In some cases, such as in the status of victims, the data could be factual (e.g., dead, detained).
- Fields for management data - These are fields used by the organisation for its internal operations, such as in keeping track of who entered which records into the database, or which fields are to be included when exchanging with certain other organisations.
What are roles?
Roles define what a person is in relation to an event. For types of roles, please refer to “What are the roles that a Person can have in an Event?”
What is a Document?
A document is anything that provides information (like a picture, death certificate, article, etc.). A document can also have a file attachment, in any format. Documents can be linked to any other records, and linked to many different records all at the same time: this reflects the idea that documentary sources often evidence many different things.
What is documentation?
Documentation is a process consisting of several activities, namely:
- determining what information is needed and establishing means for acquiring it;
- recording the discovered information and storing such in appropriate containers (called documents) or collecting already-existing documents containing the needed information;
- Organizing the documents to make them more accessible; and actually providing the documents to users who need the information.
To read more on this subject, please read the HURIDOCS manual “What is Documentation?” which can be found at http://www.huridocs.org/tools/overview.
What is monitoring?
Monitoring means the close observation of a situation or individual case carried out so as to determine what further action needs to be taken. The following elements constitute monitoring:
- It is carried out over an extended period of time.
- It involves collecting or receiving a large quantity of data.
- Close observation of the situation is done through constant or periodic examination or investigation and documentation of developments.
- Standards or norms are used as reference in objectively assessing the situation or case in question, especially in determining what is wrong with it.
- Tools or instruments are used in identifying how the situation compares with established standards or norms.
- The product of monitoring is usually a report about the situation.
- The report embodies an assessment of the situation which provides a basis for further action.
To read more on this subject, please read the HURIDOCS manual “What is Monitoring?” which can be found at http://www.huridocs.org/tools/overview.
How do you rate the reliability of source information?
Perhaps one of the most difficult tasks in documentation of human rights abuses is assessing the reliability of your source. With this in mind, we have added fields to OpenEvSys that will allow you to indicate how reliable you believe the source is.
What are Additional Details?
Additional Details formats contain additional information that records aspects of an act that are specific to particular types of acts. The act standard format contains a set of fields which are general to every sort of act, such as initial date, location and type of act. However, some types of act require information specific to that act, but not others. For example, if the type of act is "property damage", then the "value of the property" is something we want to know. However, if the type of act is "physical assault", why have a field for "value of the property"? Hence the additional details format. There are currently four additional details formats for killing, torture, property destruction and arrest.
What is an Involvement?
Involvement means the participation of a perpetrator in a particular act, whether as one who directly committed it, or otherwise. Details about a perpetrator's involvement are recorded separately from Acts, since there can be many perpetrators for a single act, involved in different ways.
What is Information?
Information is the provision by a source, to the fact-finder, of data about an event, a victim, or a perpetrator. Information is different from a Document, which is a method through which Information is provided or stored.
What is an Intervention?
An Intervention is any action by a Person (i.e. an individul, or an organisation) designed to change the course of an Event or the status of those involved in the Event, especially in terms of assistance. It can be for instance, the examination of a victim to seek marks of torture, or the dissemination of a press release to denounce a massacre.
What is the difference between “Sources” and “Information”?
The data gathered from a “Source” is “Information.” Thus, a source is a person, whereas "Information" is the data you gather from said person.
What is the difference between “Perpetrator” and “Involvement”?
A “Perpetrator” is a role that a person can have, whereas “Involvement” details the involvement of a “Perpetrator” in an Act.
What is the difference between “Victim” and “Act”?
A “Victim” is a role that a person can have, whereas an “Act” is the action that creates a victim.
What is the difference between “Intervening Party” and “Intervention”?
“Intervening Party” is a role, whereas “Intervention” is the action that the respective role undertook.
What is a Biographic Detail?
Biographic Details are data that document key periods in the life of an individual or group, including the various relationships that the individual or group has gone through, such as being a spouse, a member of a group, an affiliate of a bigger group or police or military careers. Other types of information that are also relevant in human rights monitoring include the educational and employment history of an individual.
Can I categorize records into the rights violated?
Yes, the analysis feature of OpenEvSys allows you to search your records based on rights violated. For example, you can look for all cases where abduction was the violation and easily bring up all relevant entries your organization has made.
Can an Act violate more than one right?
Yes and No. And Act by nature constitutes a single violation, but an Event can contain multiple Acts, which allows OpenEvSys can still express multiple violations. However, the particular conduct described in an Act could violate a number of different sorts of rights. For example, the physical assault of a journalist violates the right to physical integrity, but may also violate the right to freedom of assembly or expression, depending on context. These are difficult legal questions.
Can a Person be a victim more than once?
Yes, a person can be a victim multiple times. OpenEvSys indicates this by listing individual Acts when viewing an Event. For example, if a person is abducted and then executed, you can give in the first act as abduction and the second act as an execution. OpenEvSys will list each act separately, even if the victim is the same. Example of a person being a victim more than once
Can a person be a Victim, and then a Perpetrator, in the same Event?
Yes.
Can a person be a Victim, and then a Perpetrator in different Events?
Yes.
General Questions for User Accounts
What is a user?
A user is anyone with access to OpenEvSys through proper credentials (username / password). All users must be created and assigned individually by the site administrator. OpenEvSys does not allow "remote signups".
Can we use OpenEvSys with many users at the same time?
Yes, multiple users can login at any point. In fact, you can log in as many times as you like at the same time using different internet browsers from different locations.
How do we add new users to OpenEvSys?
To add a new user, start by going to the “Admin” section. Once there, look at the left side of the page and click on “User Management.” You should see a list of users (if there are none added, only “admin” will appear).
What is the maximum number of users of OpenEvSys?
There is no limit to the number of users.
What is the maximum number of users of OpenEvSys at the same time?
There is no limit to the maximum number of users who can be logged in at the same time. In fact, the same user account can be used from multiple locations, or in different tabs in the same browser.
Who can access OpenEvSys?
Only those with proper login credentials may access OpenEvSys. Please be careful about keeping your information private. Login credentials for one install of OpenEvSys will not work for another install of OpenEvSys.
Why have I been automatically logged out of OpenEvSys?
Probably because you left OpenEvSys open without doing anything for 20 minutes. This is a safeguard.
Why can't I login to OpenEvsys?
This could one of a few reasons:
- You entered an incorrect username or password, or both.
- You don't have cookies enabled on your browser. Enable them, and try again.
- You don't yet have a user account for OpenEvSys.
- Your administrator has disabled your account.
- Your administrator has changed your password.
Why does OpenEvSys automatically log me back in, even though I closed my browser window?
When a user logs into OpenEvSys with their username and password, OpenEvSys creates a session for them on the server. If you close the tab or window, and then reopen it, your session is still available on the server, so OpenEvSys tried to pick up where it left off. Sessions are closed when you either a) sign out, or b) leave OpenEvSys for 20 minutes without doing anything, when it will "time out" automatically.
Access Control Questions
If I delete a user, does it delete all the records they have created?
No. Deleting a user has no effect on the content of the database. The records a user creates or udpates will still be there, as will the "audit" record of them having done so.
Is the database secure?
No database is truly secure, but some are securer that others. For real use (and not just testing on your laptop), the OpenEvSys application should be deployed with the assistance of a system administrator familiar with the setup and running of a UNIX-based server and network environment.
Is OpenEvSys encrypted?
No, not by default. The OpenEvSys backend can be deployed into encryption tools such as LUKS or TrueCrypt. Traffic can be encrypted using Secure Socket Layer (SSL). You will need a technician to set this up for you. Before doing so, check that the use of encryption technology is legal in your country, or whether it is legal for a 3rd party to "export" this technology to you through the provision of a network service (eg. a webhost). This might be a useful resource in that respect, but we're not sure how up to date it is: http://rechten.uvt.nl/koops/cryptolaw/
What rules are there guiding access to OpenEvSys?
What is an Audit Log?
An audit log is a big list of the changes made to a record. It is a basic way of monitoring the integrity of information. in OpenEvSys. So, it includes when records were created, what type they are, when they were updated, linked or delinked together or deleted, and by who. For example, the audit log tab on an Event shows all this information for every record linked to that event, including Persons, linking formats (act, involvement, information, intervention, etc), documents, etc. Note that the audit log does not currently show what changes were made, only the fact of the change.
What does mean “ACL” mean?
ACL means "Access Control list". This is a setting that the OpenEvSys administrator can use to limit the access of certain groups of user to particular groupings of features in OpenEvSys. For example, it is possible to give a group of user access to the "Events" section, but not the "Analysis" section of OpenEvSys. ACL differs a little from the concept of "privileges", which control what a user group can do with records.
What are privileges?
Privileges determine what a user belonging to a certain role can do with the records that exist in OpenEvSys. For example, privileges determine whether you are allowed to update or create a new event.
How are privileges different from ACL?
Access Control Lists (or ACL) are intended to create roles that define what features of OpenEvSys can be accessed by users assigned to that respective role. Privileges, on the other hand, are concerned with specific actions taken within the enabled features of OpenEvSys. For example, the ACL may give you access to "Events" and permissions will then decide whether or not you can edit or create new events.
Can I hide some records from other users?
Yes and no. The general approach OpenEvSys 0.9 takes to record visibility is quite simple: "see all, or see nothing", rather than "User 1 can see fields A and B, but not C". There is one exception: where the confidentiality field of the Event format is checked (i.e. set to "Yes"), the user entering the record can choose to restrict access to that Event and all linking formats (Act, Involvement, Intervention, Information, etc) to groups of users which share a particular role. This is an experimental feature in OpenEvSys 0.9.
The development of OpenEvSys is led by the needs of users, so if you need a more complicated record visibility system, let us know.
If we make it online, is it searchable by Google?
No, OpenEvSys requires login credentials before any records can be viewed. Google cannot search or access your data, but they can certainly index the root url of your OpenEvSys site. Ther are ways to avoid this, such as deploying OpenEvSys behind a firewall or Virtual Private Network (VPN). If you want your site removed from Google, please refer to Removing my own content from Google's index
Micro-Thesauri FAQ
What are Micro-Thesauri, and why do we use Micro-Thesauri?
HURIDOCS Micro-thesauri are part of an effort to provide tools for human rights documentation. They are intended to provide controlled vocabularies for the Events Standard Formats as well as for other manual or computerized systems of documenting human rights violations. OpenEvSys comes preloaded with 68 Micro-thesauri.
Can we add other Thesauri?
Yes and no. You cannot add completely new microthesauri. However, there are two options available to you:
- You can completely delete and modify any of the current microthesauri in the system: For example, there is a microthesaurus called "Occupations", which is a big hierarchical list of jobs, which displays in the "Occupations" field in the Person form. Let's say you don't need this field or the thesaurus, but did need one for "Political Affiliation". You could rename "occupation" as "political affiliaton"; then, delete all the current terms from the "occupation" microthesaurus, and build your own list of political parties.
- Make use of the fields and microthesauri set aside for local microthesauri: these include "Local Geographical Area", "Local Index" and "Local terms for occupation". You could equally rename them to anything, purge the current microthesauri terms and add your own.
Can we edit the Micro Thesauri?
Yes, you may edit any Micro Thesauri that you wish by selecting it from the list of Thesauri, which can be accessed via the Micro Thesauri part of the Admin section.
Can we export and import new Micro-Thesauri
Yes, but it's not easy to do and requires some scripting skills and knowledge of MySQL. We are working on making this simpler.
Customizing OpenEvSys
Can I use OpenEvSys to document something other than human rights violations?
Yes and no. All OpenEvSys's fields and Micro-thesauri can be changed, but the way information is structured in OpenEvSys - using roles, with Victims and Perpetrators - is fixed. Some types of information simply don't have this structure. In many cases, you will also find it hard to collect enough information about an incident to structure it in this way.
Customizing Forms FAQ
All customization occurs in the “Admin” section of the OpenEvSys site, which can be found on the top navigation bar. Refer to “Can we hide and display fields” to see it pointed out for you. For this section of the manual we will assume you are in the Admin area and know how to get there.
What data do we enter into OpenEvSys?
That's completely up to you. The HURIDOCS Events Standard Formats provide a comprehensive framework for describing the complexity of human rights violations, but you may need to collect different types of information, or want to arrange it in a different way. OpenEvSys is highly customisable, so can enable you to do this. This can be through renaming, rearranging existing fields and HURIDOCS Micro-thesauri. It could also be through creating completely new fields.
Can we hide and display fields?
Yes, to hide or display fields, go to the form customization area located in the Admin section of OpenEvSys. Select an Entity you wish to edit, and then go to the “Visibility” tab. Once you are here, there are three options relating to three different possible views of the form you edit: “Visible in Form,” “Visible in View,” and “Visible in Browse.” If the box is checked, it is visible in that respective view. Visible in Form refers to the visibility of that field when adding a person or editing their details. Visible in View refers to the visibility of a field when looking at a record (for example, if you are looking to print a record). Visible in Browse refers to the visibility of a field when browsing through records of events, persons, etc. (in essence, what details the browsing table will show). Once you have made the changes you want, scroll down and press “Update Form” to save your changes.
Can we change the names of fields?
Yes, OpenEvSys allows you to change the name (referred to as “Label”) of any field in any form. To do so, go into the Form Customization area and select an entity. Please be sure to save your changes after editing the Labels by scrolling down and pressing “Update Form.”
Do I have to fill out all the fields?
No, OpenEvSys allows you to decide to what extent you will fill out event details. You are not required to fill out all the fields, and in addition may always go back to your Event and edit or add details. If you wish, you can force certain fields to be required by going to the “Validation” tab in Form Customization. For each field you wish to require, please click on the “Is Required” checkbox.
Please be sure to save your changes once you’ve edited the “Is Required” field by scrolling down and pressing “Update Form.”
Can we change the order of fields?
Yes, the “Order” tab of the Form Customization section allows you to change the order in which the fields appear. The lower the number, the higher it will appear in the list (confusing huh!).
Can we add Local Geographical Area, and how?
Yes, you can. Although the HURIDOCS Micro Thesauri comes with a geographical listing, we have not provided a similar listing for local geographical areas simply due to the fact that all organizations will have different areas of interest and will wish to group events based on self-defined geographical terms. Please jump to the section on Micro Thesauri Customization for a step-by-step explanation of how to add a Local Geographical Area.
Can we add new fields?
Yes, please refer to the Form Customization page for information on how to do this.
Can we delete fields?
Yes, please refer to the Form Customization page for information on how to do this.
Can we use OpenEvSys in different languages at the same time?
Not in the sense that you mean by asking this question:
- OpenEvSys does switch between languages at the level of the interface, the field names and the Micro-Thesauri. This does not affect the data.
- The language setting is a global system setting, not a user setting. This means that two users cannot look at the same installation of OpenEvSys in different languages.
- OpenEvSys doesn't manage parallel data in different languages. For example, within the same record and the same field, and same data field, OpenEvSys does not allow you to have a distinct Sinhala version and a Tamil version. You could type the same thing in twice, in different languages, in the same field; but this would be a bad solution to the dual-language problem.
Are some fields mandatory?
Yes. By default only the minimum number of fields necessary for OpenEvSys to function are required (such as an Event ID and the automatically generated management information, like "Date Created"). You may fully customize all forms and their respective fields, and make any fields mandatory.
What are clarifying notes?
Clarifying notes allow you to add more information on a specific field where you think the data in the field does not fully explain something. You can add and remove clarifying notes for any field through Form Customization.
Can I add clarifying notes to any fields?
Yes, please refer to Form Customization for details on how to do this.
Can I search clarifying note?
Not yet. If someone really needs to, we can see about including this feature.
What types of field are there in OpenEvSys?
Lots. Here's a list, with explanations of what each is used for.
Can I change the type of field once I have entered data into it?
No, so make sure you choose the right type of field for the data you want to store.
When I hide fields, does this mean that data is deleted?
No, when you hide a field, all data is still preserved in the database but simply not displayed, so if you choose to make a field visible again, all respective data will reappear.
Can I hide fields for one user, but not another?
No, you cannot control the visibility of individual fields on a per-user basis. Instead, you may set up Roles and Permissions which designate what forms and areas of OpenEvSys your users can access.
Appearance
Can I customise the interface?
Can I change the font that OpenEvSys display?
Can I change the colors in OpenEvSys?
Can I put my logo on OpenEvSys?
How do we choose what term to use?
Local users can study the various Micro-thesauri in the HURIDOCS book, which serve as models in thesaurus construction. As for the content of the lists, it would help to gather lists from their own countries or regions. Official agencies can be of help. For instance, constructing a list of geographical areas can be aided by lists established by postal services. What do the terms in OpenEvSys mean, and who do we talk to about it? Terms are the items that make up a thesaurus and are essentially labels for. How do we define new terms to use in OpenEvSys? Please refer to “Can we edit the Micro Thesauri?” for an example of defining a new term.
Internationalisation
OpenEvSys is designed to be internationalised. This involves changing the language (e.g. from English to Khmer) and alphabet (e.g. from Latinic, to Khmer Unicode) and other kinds of setting (e.g. With Arabic, from typing Left to Right, to typing Right to Left).
What language is OpenEvSys used in?
OpenEvSys is in English, but can be used in any other language: perhaps you can help translate it into yours.
Can OpenEvSys be used in my language?
Yes. HURIDOCS is working on providing translations of OpenEvSys for different language. You can do your own though using OpenEvSys's "localisation" features in the administrator section.
How do we change the language in OpenEvSys?
Please refer to this tutorial on translating OpenEvSys in Khmer for a good understanding of how languages and translation works in OpenEvSys.
I want to use OpenEvSys in Khmer, but if I don't have Khmer UNICODE on my computer, can I still it?
No. OpenEvSys will store whatever data you input. However, unless you have Khmer UNICODE installed, you won't be able to input data correctly in Khmer from your local computer. Apple Mac computers do not yet support Khmer UNICODE. In *nix systems, you should enable support for the Central Khmer language.
The same goes for Bangla/Bengali: unless you have Bijoy installed, whatever you enter into OpenEvSys will be unrecognisable.
When I export data from OpenEvSys, and try to load it in Excel to analyse it, the text is messed up
This happens with Khmer UNICODE, but we can't rule it out with other scripts: let us know if this affects you.
It is possible to type Khmer into OpenEvSys, and it is also possible to type Khmer directly into Excel. However, when Khmer text is exported from OpenEvSys, and then loaded into Excel, it's messed up. We don't know what causes this yet. There is a fix for this:
- When exporting data from OpenEvSys, export as "CSV" (comma separated values).
- Open this .csv file in Notepad, which will be on all Microsoft Windows computers.
- Save the file as a .txt file. This involves changing the file extension from .csv to .txt.
- Open Excel, and drag the .txt file into a blank worksheet. Hopefully, your data is now there.
