-# registry calls this 'reg-researchers'
-# some drivers call this 'researcher'
-def normalize_input_researcher (record):
+# normalize an input record to a write method - register or update
+# e.g. registry calls this 'reg-researchers'
+# while some drivers call this 'researcher'
+# we need to make sure that both keys appear and are the same
+def _normalize_input (record, reg_key, driver_key):