With a recent update to Survey123, I had a problem with saved answers, wherein answers relevant to a previous answer was not being saved. I applied a workaround I was given and the problem was solved.
However, there is another problem I’m experiencing which is causing me a great deal of work. Answers from previous surveys seem to be bleeding into new surveys. I think it may be related to saved (Favorite) answers, but answers from one survey may be copying directly over into the next. Again, this has only been a problem since a relatively recent update.
My survey collects a variety of Wilderness management data from volunteers, including trail maintenance, campsite, and noxious weed data, etc.
As an example of this “bleeding:
- Surveyor begins the day by entering name, Wilderness, and trail (relevant to the wilderness selected), saves answers as favorites, and exits survey, saving it as a draft. I have recommended the old drafts be deleted before creating a new one.
- Surveyor begins hike and encounters deadfall on the trail. They paste the favorite answers and record this trail maintenance item as deadfall, and are presented with the questions about the deadfall (number, size, and whether they cleared it). They complete this, save the survey and move on.
- Surveyor next encounters a stream crossing. They paste the favorite answers and record this trail maintenance item as a stream crossing, and are presented with the questions about the crossing (type, condition, etc). They complete this, save the survey and move on.
- Surveyor next encounters noxious weeds. They paste the favorite answers and record this noxious weed infestation, and are presented with the questions about the infestation (species, phenology, extent, etc). They complete this, save the survey and move on.
- On uploading the surveys, the first survey is fine, but both the stream crossing and noxious weed surveys also include the information about the previous deadfall survey (number, size, and whether they cleared it).
I am having to go through each survey and edit out the unrelated data. For each survey that isn’t deadfall, I have to go in and delete the deadfall data. This “bleeding” is not limited to any one type of data. Noxious weed data may bleed over into a campsite survey.
Until the recent Survey123 update, the data editing required was minimal. Now it’s a major chore.
It has been my assumption that this was a problem with the saved answers, but perhaps not. It could be that answers from one survey are copying directly over into the next.
