HORTUS is an integrated digital research platform developed within the ITSERR project. This documentation provides a comprehensive overview of workflows, features, and usage for scholars, researchers, contributors, and administrators.

HORTUS is a digital research platform designed to support the full research lifecycle in Religious Studies and related disciplines. It provides researchers with a shared online environment to discover resources, collaborate with peers, manage research data, and publish outcomes within a structured and community-oriented infrastructure. HORTUS functions as a research collaboratory: a digital space where scholars can work together regardless of institutional affiliation or geographic location, using common tools, shared standards, and integrated services

• Overview of HORTUS
• How to use this manual
• Audience and roles
• Terminology

• Start here
• Sign in or register
• Role activation after registration
• What changes after sign-in
• First-session checklist
• IMPORTANT: How publication works in HORTUS

• Navigate the interface
• Top menu anatomy
• Global Search
• Recurring interface patterns
• Utility controls

• Introduction
• Projects
• Events
• News
• Experts
• Marketplace resources

• Introduction
• Why profile completeness matters
• Expert profile view
• ORCID integration
• Manual profile editing

• Introduction
• Communication channels
• Messaging workspace
• Page discussions
• Social feed
• Notifications and follows

• Introduction
• My Workspace overview
• Folder management
• Documents and versioning

• Introduction
• Create Marketplace resources
• Create project pages
• Resource and project states
• Create events
• Create news items
• My Contributions

• Introduction to FAIR data
• Why FAIR matters
• Understanding HORTUS metadata management
• HOWTO Create metadata sets
• FAIR metadata, interoperability, and export to external platforms
• Metrics and impact

• Documentation, FAQ, and Issues
• What to include in a useful support request
• Common blockers

• Account deactivation
• Account deletion

• Appendix A. Quick reference
• Appendix B. Abbreviations