Exporting Form Data
Now that you've filled out a few forms you're probably wondering how you can get that data out of Group Complete and into a spreadsheet or another flexible format. This article covers the basics of exporting data using Group Complete Mobile.
Each form that is exported is referred to as a "record" and is referred to as such in this tutorial.
Data from exported forms will be combined into a single CSV file with each record (or row) in the CSV corresponding to an exported form.
Step #1: Select forms by template name
Start by switching to the folder that contains the forms that you want to export. Once you're in the correct folder use one of the following methods to begin exporting form data.
Long-press template name & choose "Export Records"
Select and hold any template name in the form browser to activate the context menu for the selected template. Choosing Export Records from the context menu will launch the export screen and allow you to export the data associated with this template.
Set task to "Export Records" and select template name
If you are planning to export form data associated with more than one template it may save you time to change the form browser's task to Export Records. This will display all of the templates in the current folder and cause any template names that are selected to launch the export screen.
Step #2: Make export choices
There are a number of settings that allow you to choose which records will be exported, where exported data will be saved or sent and the information that will be included in the export. See below for a description of these settings.
Select Records To Export
Exported data may include draft and/or completed forms. At least one of these options must be selected.
Export Destinations
Exported data must be saved somewhere or sent to another device or email address. At least one of these options must be selected.
Save to SD card
Select this option to cause GC Mobile to save a copy of the exported data to the top-level of your mobile device's SD card.
You can retrieve data from the SD card by removing it from your mobile device and inserting it into a compatible reader attached to your computer.
If the SD card is not removable or easily accessible you can connect your mobile device to your computer using the USB adapter. Once connected you can copy the exported data from the SD card via USB sharing.
Send data via email/Bluetooth
Selecting this option will allow you to transfer exported data via email or Bluetooth after the export is complete. Additional means of sending exported data (Dropbox, etc.) may be available depending on the apps installed on your mobile device.
Export Options
ZIP exported data
This option will cause all files created during export to be compressed into a single ZIP file. This option must be selected if you are sending data via email or Bluetooth.
Include media files
This option will include files created by responses to media fields in your export. Possible file types include JPEG images (pictures) or audio/video recordings.
The names of exported media files begin with the record ID to which they are related. For example, if an exported picture is named 1321999759978.jpg and the ID of the record that it is a part of is fae4dcca0bc08dffcaed6b624c006e90 then the exported media file will be named fae4dcca0bc08dffcaed6b624c006e90-1321999759978.jpg.
Include XForm files (XML export option)
This option will include XForm instance files along with exported data. A separate XML file will be created for each form that is exported.
Include record metadata
The following metadata for each record may be included in the exported CSV file.
Template Name
The name of template associated with the forms that were exported.
Template ID
The unique ID of the template. This will remain the same regardless of whether the template is renamed and may be used for import into a third-party system.
Record ID
The unique ID of the form from which the data in this record was exported. This value may be used for import into a third-party system.
This ID is also used to associate exported media files with their records and will be added to the exported CSV file regardless of whether other metadata is included.
Record Date Created
The date and time that the form was created.
Record Created By
The email address of the device that was used to created this form. If an alias was assigned to the device it will be shown here instead of the email address.
Record Date Updated
The date and time that the form was last saved/updated.
Record Updated By
The email address of the device that was last used to save/update this form. If an alias was assigned to the device it will be shown here instead of the email address.
Record Status
The status of form at time of export.
Step #3: Select Begin export
When you are ready to start exporting data, select Begin export from the bottom of the export screen (you may need to scroll the screen to see the button).
After all records have been exported a summary message will appear with a tally of the number of records successfully exported vs. the total number of records to export (e.g., 10/10).
If you opted to save exported data to your mobile device's SD card the summary message will include the name of the folder or ZIP file that your exported data was saved to. Look for this folder/ZIP name in the top-level of the SD card.
If you opted to send data via email or Bluetooth a Send button will appear below the summary. Selecting this button will show a list of methods that you can use to transfer the exported data including email and Bluetooth.
Additional means of sending export data may be available depending on the apps installed on your mobile device.
If no options for sending are available configure the Gmail or Email app and try again.