Migrating from Terminal mode CATI to webCATI

This document provides some guidelines to quickly help convert terminal cati to webcati. This will provide for basic browser formatting that more or less emulates terminals. This is not intended to be a permanent solution for your webcati designs. The goal is a quick conversion that can then be followed up with more detailed design updates.

NOTE:Before any type of study migration, you will need to be licensed for webCATI studies and you will need to make sure you have the proper Core Software version installed on your study server.

General Information

  • Each question will appear on its own screen
  • Scales will present as lists not horizontal scales or matrix designs
  • Field, Text, and Variable type questions should use the Terminal SYSTEM,Execute_Compiler_Directive_Block (SYSTEM,C for reference throughout this documentation) block described below
  • Numeric type questions would use the TerminalNum SYSTEM,C block
  • Use WCATUTIL to create the template files needed to run the study on the web.
  • All Interviewer stations will need Internet access
  • Recommended browsers: IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari
    • All browsers should be the most recent version
  • A web server (Apache) needs to be on the same system server

Best Practices

  • To display question numbers on the screen use {!HTML_SHOW_QUESTION_LABELS }
  • For testing purposes you might also add {!HTML_SHOW_RESPONSE_CODES} to display the response values
  • Add !SYSTEM,C blocks for question formatting (See below)
  • For numeric type questions
    • Add !HTML_NUM_EXCEPTION_TEXT and <br/> for line breaks and blank lines.
    • Add text for the exception codes in NUMERIC questions.
  • If you have @defines for formatting, review and update to appropriate HTML/CSS. Use span tags with CSS to control inline formatting when possible.


Example:
>DEFINE @END <br/><br/>

  • Add in global HTML settings


{!DISPLAY_MODE=WEBCATI }
{!HTML_DATAQUESTIONS_ONLY }
{!HTML_SHOW_RESPONSE_CODES }
”{!HTML_KEYBOARD_INPUT_MODE }
{!HTML_RADIOBUTTONS=500 }
{!HTML_CHECKBOXES=500 }

  • Create SYS,C blocks for quick formatting


” Use this for FIELD, VARIABLE, AND TEXT type questions
{ TERMINAL: !START_CD_BLOCK }
{!html_error_prefix=<span class=”error”>}
{!html_error_suffix=</span><br><br>}
{!HTML_Text_Prefix=<span class=”qtext”><b><pre>}
{!HTML_Text_Suffix=</span></b></pre>}
{!html_rc_prefix=}
{!html_rc_suffix=}
{!html_rx_prefix=}
{!html_rx_suffix=}
{!html_rl_prefix=<div class=”qlabel”>}
{!html_rl_suffix=</div>}
{!html_rlc_prefix=<span class=”qcomment”>}
{!html_rlc_suffix=</span><br>}
{!html_rt_prefix=}
{!html_rt_suffix=<br>}
{!html_num_input_prefix=}
{!html_num_input_suffix=}
{!html_num_exception_prefix=}
{!html_num_exception_suffix=}
{!html_var_input_prefix=<span class=”qvar”>}
{!html_var_input_suffix=</span><br>}
{!html_textquestion_input_prefix=<span class=”qtex”>}
{!html_textquestion_input_suffix=</span><br>}
{!html_field_n_input_prefix=}
{!html_field_n_input_suffix=}
{!END_CD_BLOCK }

” Use this for NUMERIC type questions
{ TERMINALNUM: !START_CD_BLOCK }
{!html_error_prefix=<span class=”error”>}
{!html_error_suffix=</span><br><br>}
{!HTML_Text_Prefix=<br><span class=”qtext”><b> }
{!HTML_Text_Suffix=</span></b> }
{!html_rc_prefix= }
{!html_rc_suffix= }
{!html_rx_prefix= }
{!html_rx_suffix= }
{!html_rl_prefix= }
{!html_rl_suffix= }
{!html_rlc_prefix= }
{!html_rlc_suffix= }
{!html_rt_prefix= }
{!html_rt_suffix=<br> }
{!html_num_input_prefix=<br><br> }
{!html_num_input_suffix=}
{!html_num_exception_prefix= }
{!html_num_exception_suffix=}
{!html_question_text_suffix=<br><br> }
{!html_var_input_prefix= }
{!html_var_input_suffix= }
{!html_textquestion_input_prefix=<span class=”qtex”> }
{!html_textquestion_input_suffix=</span><br> }
{!html_field_n_input_prefix= }
{!html_field_n_input_suffix= }
{!END_CD_BLOCK }

  • Add {!SYS,C,TERMINAL } prior to starting your questions to apply the formatting
  • After migrating a study to webCATI, we recommend the following:
    • Review each page for formatting
    • Test the workflow (with the dialer) if applicable
    • Validate the data of the study prior to going Live


For webCATI studies a supervisor does not use the START/STOPStation functions.

NOTE:The Start/Stop functions in the Survox Console are for terminal mode CATI studies only.

In the Survox Console, under Manage – Monitoring and Stations there is an Authorize WebCATI function that should be used.

Authorizing webCATI stations is saying an interviewer CAN log in on a specified station and start interviewing on a study. Once the stations are authorized, you do NOT need to ever clear them out until the end of the study. They can remain authorized until you manually want to clear them, but there isn’t a need at the end of the shift to do that. They will also remain authorized when the server is restarted.

You can also use this function to change your interviewers from one study to another without having to issue a Stop station command.

For more information on how these functions work Click Here for the documentation.

  • Terminal to WebCati Conversion.docx