Hot Tips from the Training Department

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1 Topic Title: Vovici 6 Which Questionnaire Edit Mode Should I Use? Topic Description: Vovici 6 introduces a new user interface with enhanced questionnaire design experience. With the new Questionnaire Designer in Vovici 6 it is easy to switch between the two edit modes while working on the questionnaire. Now the only question is - which mode should you use to design your survey questionnaire? The Short Answer: The answer is easy use both! Each mode contains unique features which improve your questionnaire design efficiency when used at key stages during questionnaire design. In this article, we will explore the characteristics of the Step-by-Step and Free Form Editor modes of the Vovici 6 Questionnaire Designer and examine best practice cases for each. A more detailed answer: The ability to choose between the Step-by-Step and Free Form editor modes of the Vovici Questionnaire Designer is a powerful feature that has been available since the first version of the product. In past versions however, it was necessary to choose a mode before conducting edit activities. With Vovici 6, you can now switch between modes without interruption, which means you can use one mode for work on one page or question and switch to the other mode for others. To switch modes, just click the Edit Mode button on the action bar in the Questionnaire Designer and choose the mode. It is important to note that the Free Form Editor mode places certain Web browser requirements upon the survey designer: Microsoft Internet Explorer, version 7 or later must be used. One-time ActiveX installation must be supported by your computer and network security policy. Assuming that your computer and network support both, your next challenge is to know how to use each mode to conduct questionnaire design activities such as adding, editing and formatting questions and textual content. Let s review these basic functions in each mode. Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 1

2 Using the Modes When using Step-by-Step mode, you add a question or other content by any of several methods. You can either click into a blank space at the end of the question pane on the right, or you can click the Add button anywhere to open the Add a Question pane on the left. You need only click the button for the desired item and fill in the fields in the left pane. In the following screen, we have chosen to add a Multiple Choice: Choose One question to the end of the current page. We simply assign a Question Heading, Type a Question Text and provide choices, then watch as our question is rendered in the right pane. ti just can t get any easier than that! In Step-by-Step Mode, all of the formatting and editing properties and tools are available in the left pane by way of links, fields, buttons and sections. With Step-by-Step mode, we use the left pane to conduct editing and formatting tasks and observe the changes in the right pane. Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 2

3 In Free Form Edit Mode, we take a different approach, in that we must craft our question by using editing and formatting techniques more common with word processing editors. To create a question, we use the right pane and type the question heading, text and choices in a specific manner. In the following screen we see the same question that was created earlier, presented in this mode. To create a question in Free Form Mode, you first type a Q character followed by a. and a <space> then press the Enter key. The second line is dedicated to the question text, after which you also press the Enter key. Finally you use word processing list builder technique by first clicking the desired list icon on the icon bar across the top of the right pane. Type the first choice in the place holder and press the Enter Key. To build a choice list, type each new choice on a separate line. In the following screen the square icon was clicked to create a Choose-many question list. The highlighted Choice placeholder can be overtyped with the next list element. To end the choice list for the question, you must press the Enter key twice in sequence. Note that all formatting is done with icons in the right pane. To apply the bold attribute to a word in the question, just highlight the word and click the Bold icon. Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 3

4 A final step in creating questions or other content with the Free Form Edit mode is the Refresh task. In order to commit the changes made in the right pane, click the Refresh icon on the top of the left pane. When the new question appears in the list at the top of the left pane, then you know the edit has been saved. Choosing between Modes Now when is it better to use one mode in place of another? That s the million dollar question and the reason for this article. In Step-by-Step mode, all action for creating questions and other content is taken with elements in the left pane. You simply fill in the appropriate field or choose the desired property and watch as your actions are applied in the right pane immediately. If you are using the Questionnaire Designer to create original questions and need to design on the spot, this mode is ideal as you are able to see what you are doing, and can make changes on the spot. But what if you have used an external editor to draft your questions and content and want to paste a set of questions into place and apply formatting once they have been added to the questionnaire. That s where the Free Form Edit mode shines. In the following screen, a question was drafted in a Word document and Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 4

5 pasted into the right pane of the Questionnaire Designer. The list of choices has been highlighted and will be converted into a Choose-one type. The Style list is a powerful feature of the Free Form Edit mode that makes it possible to assign a list type, therefore determining the question type after the question has been pasted onto the page. The Style feature is one of the key benefits of using Free Form Edit mode during early design, as you can change the question type by changing the list Style. For instance, even if you prefer to use Step-by-Step mode for most of your editing work, if you need to change the type of an existing question, it s easiest to change to Free Form Edit mode, highlight and change the list type, click the Refresh button and return to Step-by-Step mode. Selecting Question Choices from the Library One valuable, timesaving feature of the Vovici 6 Questionnaire Designer is the ability to use the Vovici Scale library to insert pre-defined choice lists in Matrix and Multiple Choice questions. Using the Scale library is somewhat different in each mode. In Step-by-Step mode, you start the question by clicking the Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 5

6 appropriate question type button - such as Multiple Choice: Choose One and then you enter the heading and text in the fields. To use a scale from the library as the choice list, you must first use the Edit Together option. Next you must click the Expand icon (indicated in the above illustration) to open the choice list in a separate dialog, then click the Library Scale icon (highlighted below) to select the desired scale. Finally, you must remove the default Response Text items from the new list before clicking the OK and Save buttons to update your question. Okay, so that s quite a few button clicks to obtain a choice list just to avoid having to type it from scratch. In Free Form Editor Mode, you add the first two elements of the new question in the editor and place your cursor on the line below the question text. Then click the Scale Library icon, pick the desired scale, click OK, and you re done! Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 6

7 You will notice that you even get the Choose-one type applied to your list, which is great unless you wanted a Choose-many list. That s where the Style property saves the day again. Just highlight the choice list in the right pane, and select the Choose-many type from the Style list and you now have a Choosemany question with the choice list selected from the library. In this case, the Free Form Editor mode may just be easier to use when creating new questions with choice lists selected from the Scale library. Sometimes The Choice is made for you There are a few times when you just have to use a certain Edit mode with Questionnaire Designer, and that s when you need to use image based questions like Multiple Choice with images, Slider Scale and Drag & Drop Rank Order. These question types may be created only from the Step-by-step mode and are represented with appropriate New Content buttons. Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 7

8 You will notice that these questions are not even available in Free Form Editor Mode, but that doesn t mean you can t use the mode after you ve inserted them. You just have to use Step-by-Step mode to create and edit these types of questions. When in Free Form Editor Mode, you will notice placeholders for the special image based questions as illustrated in the following screen. Perhaps it s not so much a case of which mode of Questionnaire Designer you should use, but when should you use each mode. You don t just have to choose one mode over the other because it makes a certain task more efficient. Sometimes you can choose your edit mode just because it s more fun! Vovici 6 Selecting the Right Questionnaire Edit Mode to Use Page 8