Auto advance to next entry
By default, you press Enter or click Next to confirm a response and advance the Data Entry Player to the next variable. For questions that are limited to a single categorical response, you can specify that the Data Entry Player automatically advances to the next question if the maximum response length is reached for the current one. For example, for a question that expects a keycode in the range 1-5, the Data Entry Player advances to the next question when a value in that range is specified. However, if the range is 1-10, then the Data Entry Player advances only when two digits have been entered. In this case, you can trigger automatic advancement for values in the range 1-9 by typing a leading zero, as in 09.
When automatic advancement is configured, it also enables the automatic placement of separator values for responses entered in multiple response questions (for more information, see
Entering a multiple categorical response). For multiple response questions, a separator character is inserted when the maximum length for a given response is reached. You can manually select to advance to the next entry when another code is entered directly after the added separator, or if all responses are keyed for the variable. For questions that accept multiple responses, a separator character is inserted when the maximum length for a given response is reached.
Example 1: Automatic separator for multiple response questions
Data Entry Player automatically enters separator values for the codes 01, 03, and 10.
1 Operator enters 01
2 Interviewer automatically adds a separator
3 Operator enters 03
4 Interviewer automatically adds a separator
5 Operator enters 10
6 Operator selects to advance to the next entry
In effect, the operator can key 010310 and press ENTER for maximum entry speed.
Example 2: Manual entry needed when automatic separation is enabled
The operator will need to manually enter separator values for the codes 01, 03, and 10.
1 Operator enters 1
2 Operator manually adds a separator
3 Operator enters 3
4 Operator manually adds a separator
5 Operator enters 10
6 Operator selects to advance to the next entry
Since the valid code range is at least two digits in length, single digit entries require a leading zero. If the operator does not key the leading zero, the code will still be accepted as raw data, however the automatic separator will not be added because the maximum code length is not reached for codes 01 and 03. In effect, the operator would key 1,3,10 and press ENTER to advance to the next entry.
The setting for automatic advancement is specified in the Configuration Wizard. For more information, see
UNICOM Intelligence Interviewer - Basic Configuration.
See also