Merging surveys

Since the DET supports spliting of surveys (exporting partial item lists) it also has a merge function. You can merge any number of datasets from the same survey to obtain a union of all items and observations they contain.

Before using the merge function of the DET you first have to import the datasets that will take part in the merge process. Once you have imported the datasets, access the merge operation by clicking on the Survey -> Merge... menu. You will be presented with the Merge dialog.

The merge dialog
The merge dialog

The window has 3 parts. On the top part you select which survey contains that datasets that will be merged.

The second part of the window has two lists. The left list is prefilled with all datasets for this survey contained in your DET installation. If you don't see the datasets that you want, remember that you have to import them from the exported ZIP files first.

The right list contains the datasets that will take part in the merge operation. Use the arrow buttons to move datasets from the left list to the second. The dataset that will be merged can be any number and type (partial or full surveys). The result will always be the union of items and observations. Notice also, that partial surveys that complement each other, will result in a full survey as expected.

You can also use the Up and Down buttons to set the priority for the merged datasets. These change the order of datasets contained in the right list. In case of conflicts (e.g. the same item but with different VAT) the dataset at the top of the list will prevail.

In the third part of the window you enter the name of the new dataset that will be created as the result of the merge process. Finally click on the Merge button to complete the operation.

See also:

Importing a Dataset from a ZIP file
Exporting a Dataset to a ZIP file