Shipping and Receiving Data

When you are ready to send data from a Local Site to your Coordinating Center you will start by creating an Interview Shipment File.

Create an Interview Shipment File (Local Site)

1. Select File|Open Warehouse to open the Local Warehouse containing the data to be shipped.
2. Select File|New Shipment to create the Shipment File.
3. Enter the filename for the Shipment File in the File Name box. (It will have the extension .QTD.)
4. Click Create.
5. Select Window|Tile Horizontally to view the Local Warehouse and Shipment window at the same time.
6. Select the Local Warehouse window and highlight the interviews to be shipped. You may also select Edit|Select All, to select all interviews.
7. Select Edit|Ship from Warehouse.
8. You will see these interviews in the Interviews to Ship window.

Note that the status of the transferred interviews changes to Shipped as they are copied. Dragging and dropping between the Local Warehouse and Interviews to Ship windows will also transfer the selected interviews for shipment.

When you have finished adding interviews to your Interview Shipment File, send the Shipment File (*.QTD) to your Data Coordinating Center using your preferred method (e-mail, FTP, cloud, network, etc.).

Receiving Data (Data Center)

The Data Coordinating Center will receive data collected at field sites.

1. Create a new Warehouse (File|New Warehouse) or open a preexisting Warehouse (File|Open Warehouse).
2. Select File|Open.
3. Select the folder from the Look in box containing the Shipment File(s).
4. Select Interview Shipment Files from the Files of type box.
5. Select the Shipment File Name (*.QTD) you would like to add.
6. Click Open.
7. Select Window|Tile Horizontally to view the Warehouse and Shipment windows at the same time.
8. From the Shipment File window, select the interview(s) to transfer to the Warehouse (or select Edit|Select All to select all interviews).
9. Select Edit|Copy to Warehouse.
10. Repeat steps 2-9 for additional Shipment Files.
11. Once all Shipment Files have been copied, save (File|Save) and close (File|Close) your Shipment and Warehouse Files.

Note that the status of the copied interviews changes to Transferred as they are copied.

Tip: Dragging and dropping between the Shipment File and Local Warehouse windows will also transfer selected interviews.

Generating Receipt Files (Data Center)

After you have closed your Warehouse File, QDS will automatically generate a Receipt File for each Shipment File that you added to that Warehouse File. Each file will have the Shipment name plus the extension .QSR and will reside in the same folder as your Warehouse File.

Now, you can send the Receipt Files (*.QSR) to the data collection site at which the Shipment Files originated.

Posting Receipts (Local Site)

At the data collection field site, you will receive one or more Receipt Files (*.QSR). To process these:

1. Select File|Open Warehouse to open the local Data Warehouse.
2. Select File|Open to open the Receipt File.
3. Select Shipment Receipt Files from the Files of type box.
4. Select the Receipt File (*.QSR) to post.
5. Click Open.
6. Select Window|Tile Horizontally to view Local Warehouse and Receipt windows at the same time.
7. From the Receipt File window, select the interview(s) to post receipts for (or select Edit|Select All to select all interviews in Receipt File).
8. Select Edit|Post Receipts.

Tip: The status of each corresponding interview in the Local Warehouse changes from Shipped to Transferred . The status of each posted interview in the Shipment Receipt File is now Deleted . Since all the interviews in the Shipment Receipt File are deleted after posting, the interviews are removed and the file becomes empty.