Keeping track of research data and documentation is critical. Strategies include:
Spend time planning out both folder hierarchy and file naming conventions in the beginning of a project. Consider how you or others will look for and access files at a later date. Do you think about them by type, location, study or something else?
Establish a directory/folder hierarchy that aligns with the project. Example: [Project] / [Experiment] / [Instrument or Type of file]
Consider all aspects of the project and develop a file naming scheme that includes important metadata. Example: [Date]_[Run]_[SampleType]
Consider sorting when deciding what element of the file name will go first. File names starting with YYYYMM will sort differently than files starting with the MMDDYYYY format.
Provide a method for easy adoption. Consider a shared Box with the folder hierarchy in place and a readme file in onboarding documentation for new contributors.
