#Openoffice templates newsletter how to

Consider having more than one person enter the data.Only allow certain data types (i.e., numbers, letters) to be entered in designated columns so that if the data type is entered incorrectly, the form will reject the entry.Create forms (i.e., in Google Forms, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, or OpenOffice Calc) to control how the data are entered.Use a separate column to track and describe missing data across the rows.Be sure if you use a specific value to represent missing data, there is no chance that value will be used to represent actual data at a later time (e.g., using 9999 to represent missing data). Decide how you are going to handle missing/null values before entering data. Standardize how missing data are represented.The file name should be descriptive and concise.Column names should be descriptive and should not contain strange symbols.Efficient organization - Data that are organized efficiently can be read by statistical packages.

Dates and geographic data should use the same format and datum (for geographic data).Names, codes, and formats must be consistent.Be sure that the columns of data have only numbers, dates, or text and contain the same information.Use forms when entering data so that some quality assurance is automatically taken care of during data entry.As notes and information about the data are added over time and by various people on the team, creating a standard metadata template that specifies how this information is entered will keep the metadata organized and easily readable. Similarly, metadata should have a standard template.

Templates for data storage specify how to name files and folders consistently and stipulate where the data should be kept, either for short- or long-term storage. Templates for data storage and metadata are also useful for standardizing procedures. This means the connections between the various columns will be lost. Unless one selects the option to include all other columns, only one column will be sorted, leaving the others in an unsorted state. One example is that it is possible to select and sort a user-specified column from A-Z or vice-versa. However, some of these processes can cause problems. When using a template to store data, various spreadsheet programs can help process and visualize the data. Lastly, consider graphing or mapping the data to ensure there are no unexpected outliers. Check the beginning and ending portions of your data for errors, and then randomly spot-check other values throughout the form. This is useful as it allows one to check the data that have been entered into the system against the original data. This facilitates a comparison between the data entered to make sure they are a match. Either while the data are being entered in the first time, or afterwards, consider having another person reenter in the data. Also, include the datum for any geographical data (such as 'NAVD88').Īfter data have been collected, there are several things that can be done to check data entry. When entering data that has a unit associated with it, be sure to include that unit in the header (such as 'Height (cm)').

Good values are ones that are long enough to describe the data included in the cells below or next to it, but are short enough to make readability easier by either humans or machines.Īvoid using spaces or special characters (like * or +) in the name, as it may cause issues when inputting the data into a database.

When creating the form, give special consideration to how to label the columns and headers for the form. Forms can also constrain fields in the form of pull-down menus which use a controlled vocabulary to ensure that the data are entered in the correct locations. If the data are entered incorrectly, the form will reject such data entry. These mechanisms are typically called forms within a data processing program such as Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, Google Forms, or OpenOffice Calc (see 'Tools' below for more information).įorms can be created in any of these programs so that they only allow a certain data type to be entered into a field. This includes ensuring that the template is consistent, has clearly defined headers, rows, and terms, and has mechanisms to reduce human error. Before data collection, planning how the data will be recorded into the template is vital.

#Openoffice templates newsletter how to