Export Results
When the last run of a scheduled survey has been notified, an alert will appear asking participants if they would like to email the results back now or later. If the participant misses the last survey run, this message will still appear when they open the app again. This alert will show after each run-once survey. If participants opt to email results later, to do this they will need to go to the PIEL Survey home screen and tap the arrow to the right of the survey name. This will offer the alternative of emailing or sharing the results or deleting the survey.
The email will attach a separate data file for each survey in the project.
For the email function to work, the device must have a valid email account.
Apple devices will attempt to use the Apple mail app to email the data as a first option. The participant must have a valid email account (for example, their iCloud account) and the account must be activated in Settings. To check this, go to: Settings > Tap your account name > Select the account (e.g. iCloud) > enable the toggle for mail. If there is no valid and activated account, tapping the “Email” option in the menu will bring up the share sheet so the user can choose a different email app or even another sharing method altogether.
Results will be emailed to the address in listed in the author-email field of the Control File. If no email is placed in the Control File, the participant can type in the email when the email screen appears.
After emailing the responses, the data can be deleted by clicking "Delete All Responses". This will bring up a confirmatory message.
We recommend that participants don't delete data until it is confirmed that the researcher has received the results.
Share
Email is the default option used by the app but some participants may have trouble setting up an email account or may prefer a different email app than Apple Mail or even another method of sharing altogether. For this reason, there is an option to "Share" the file using operating systems share capability. Participants will be familiar with this process. The can simply tap the blue "Action Arrow" and select "Share" from the menu. This will bring up a selection of apps that are on their device which can Share the data file.
This choice will require the participant to fill in or choose the recipient details.
File Sharing
File sharing is not used very often as it requires more steps. It is more likely to be used by researchers who provide the devices to participants then recover the devices at the end of the study.
Computers with MacOS version Catalina or later use Finder for file sharing. Earlier versions of MacOS or computers with Windows 7 or later use iTunes. Instructions for iTunes are below.
- Plug the device into the computer and open iTunes.
- Click on the icon indicating your device at the top of the window.
- Click on file sharing.
- Scroll down to the PIEL Survey app and click.
- In the window on the right you will see the data file (.csv)
- Either drag and drop the file or save it to your desired location.