Universally Unique Identifier

Universally Unique Identifiers, or UUIDs, are codes that are unique to your dataset, even when compared to others' datasets. Using UUIDs provides a way to keep track of your records even when they are distributed and shared amongst other datasets, as is the case with iMapInvasives and other systems such as ODA's WeedMapper.

What makes a UUID a good idea to include in your dataset? Imagine you make an observation of a weed you found at a state park. You record the latitude and longitude, species name, and date, and your GPS unit gives it a record ID of 1. These pieces of information are enough to make this record unique in your own dataset.

However, the more your data gets shared, between peers, other agencies, or systems like iMapInvasives, the harder it gets to keep track of where your observation originated. Even if each system maintains all the data you collected, comparing multiple datasets gets very tricky. Latitude and longitude values can change during transformations to different projection systems, date syntax may change, your name may not remain attached to the observation point. Your record ID of 1 is not unique when compared to others' data which may also use a sequential numbering system.

A way around this is to use a UUID. This is a computer generated string of numbers and letters that has a very high probability of being globally unique, meaning there is a very low chance that anyone else will generate the same number as you, anywhere, anytime. This means that if your observation has a UUID that is maintained wherever it is shared, you or anyone else will always be able to link that record back to you and your original data.

This will be especially helpful in the case of WeedMapper and iMapInvasives, which track many of the same species and information, and gathers data from similar sources. By comparing the UUIDs of two datasets, one can easily determine which records are found in one set but not the other. This is much easier than comparing location + species name + date + observer, especially when these fields may be reformatted in different datasets.

UUIDs can be any numeric or text code that provides a permanent and unique ID for each of your observations, but an easy way to incorporate them into your data is to have your computer generate them for you. One option is to use an online Universally Unique IDentifier (UUID) generator (such as http://www.uuidgenerator.net/) to generate ids or to use the tool at https://github.com/leffjesh/arcgis-toolbox-uniqueIDgenerator.You can also use ArcMap to generate UUIDs with Field Calculator or Add Global IDs in ArcGIS Pro.