Getting Started Checklist

If you are new to the Dimensions Search Language and the Dimensions Analytics API, here is a list of useful things to get you started.

[1] Verify your connection.

Ensure you can access the API using your personal credentials, via one of the methods described in the api section.

[2] Install the open source Dimcli library.

Dimcli is a command-line tool and Python library that allows to create DSL queries interactively via an autocomplete mechanism, hence making it easier to learn the language and discover new features.

[3] Do the tutorial.

The Tour of the DSL section introduces the most important DSL topics gradually and with straightforward examples, so it is a great way to get a feeling for what the API has to offer.

[4] Explore the data sources model.

The Data Sources section includes detailed information about all the main record types available to query, their properties and cross-links.

[5] Try out real-world applications.

The Dimensions API Lab is an open source repository of Jupyter notebooks demonstrating how to use the DSL to carry out different scholarly analytics tasks, e.g. building a citation network, doing a journals competitors analysis, tracking researchers’ affiliations over time etc..

[6] Join the community forum.

The API Users Forum is the official channel for versions announcements, news, lessons learned and best practices about the Dimensions Analytics API.