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This describes the layout of external file used to view and update all the project entry texts.

These files are accessed by using:

•[Project] [Output interview texts to file]

•[Project] [Output all entry texts to file]

•[Project] [Update all entry texts using file]

from the Main window menu.

There are two common reasons for doing this:

•To check for and correct any spelling or grammar mistakes

•To make a copy of the project and translate into another language

The response texts file can be a CSV file or a Microsoft Excel file.

Output file

The file generated is always a CSV file with a row for every different text that appears in the project.  Any texts that appear more than once are only listed once.

The output file has the following columns:

Count

This shows the number of times that this text appears in the project.  Question texts will normally be unique but response texts will often appear many times, for example "Agree a lot" or "Don't know".

Type

This shows the type of text:

•Question

•Instruction

•Base

•Response

Text

The text as it appears in the project.

New

This is identical to the "Text" column in the generated file.  It is used to give the corrected or translated text to replace the original.

Input file

These text files are used to update all the found texts.

Only texts listed in the "Text" column are replaced.  Texts not listed will be unchanged.

Any rows where the "New" column is the same as the "Text" column are ignored.

Only the texts are changed; all other settings in the project remain as before.

Only existing texts can have their text replaced; texts will not be added.

The update can safely be run whenever needed; it will only change existing texts that are found in the "Text" column.

IMPORTANT: empty texts in the "New" column will not be used; only new texts with one or more characters (including spaces) will be used.

CSV file

A CSV input file layout is the same as the output file layout except that the "Count" column is not needed.

To determine the type of texts to be updated, the file must have one of these:

•The "Type" column is present and contains one of the four types: "Question", "Instruction", "Base", or "Response" for each text

•The file itself must be called one of these types and only the named type of texts will be updated

The "Text" and "New" columns must be present.

XLS file

An XLS file layout is the same as the output file layout except that the "Count" column is not needed.

To determine the type of texts to be updated each worksheet must have one of these:

•The "Type" column is present and contains one of the four types: "Question", "Instruction", "Base", or "Response" for each text

•The worksheet itself must be called one of these types and only the named type of texts will be updated for that worksheet

The "Text" and "New" columns must be present.

Example for spelling correction

Because each text only appears once, this is much quicker than trying to update entries manually.

If the file is loaded to a spreadsheet program then that program's spelling checker can be used on the "New" column.

The process normally:

•Outputs all entry texts to file

•Modifies the "New" column where necessary

•Updates all entry texts using file

Corrected lines in the file might look like this

All other lines have identical "Text" and "New" columns and will be ignored.

When updating using this file the altered question text will be changed, the 5 questions with "read list" as the interviewer text will be changed, and the 12 entries with a response of "Cant remember" will be changed.

The update will only alter texts that are exactly as shown in the "Text" column.  Running this update file a second time will not change any entries because the texts will have already been changed to the "New" texts.

Example for translation

The process normally:

•Outputs all entry texts to file

•Modifies the "New" column to the new language

•Copies the project (.qdf) file

•Updates all entry texts in the new project file

A typical line in the file might look like this

It may be better to split the file and make separate worksheets for each text type. Only the last two columns are then needed in each worksheet: the original language text and the new language text.