Epi Info™ User Guide

Web Survey

Designing Forms for the Web

The Epi Info™ Web Survey System allows for publishing short, single form projects (without grids or related forms) to the web for online data entry. This design creates certain features and behavioral differences between the web survey format and the full Epi Info™ functionality. Be aware of these differences and plan for them when designing a survey. For example, not all field types or check code commands are supported or provide value on a web survey. Additionally, required fields and drop-down lists may behave differently on a browser than they do on the Epi Info™ 7 Enter tool.

Before creating a survey, set the computer resolution to 1366 x 768 or 1024 x 768. These are the two most common screen resolutions in use today according to GS.StatCounter.com. If participants take the survey on an average non-mobile browser, this adjustment aligns the resolution to that of the most common participant. This will mitigate any discrepancies between how the survey appears to the designer and the participant.

These specifications are not necessary for participants using browsers on smart phones, tablets or other mobile devices. The Epi Info™ Web Survey System automatically adjusts the display when a survey is accessed with a mobile device. Surveys for these small screen-sized devices appear with a stacked question arrangement by tab order. For small mobile devices, horizontal field placement is irrelevant, as the fields appear one above the next.

After creating a new blank project, but before adding fields to the page, consider the page layout and size. A ‘landscape’ page orientation provides more width than height, which is consistent with most web pages. To set the page size and orientation, select Format > Page Setup from the menu. On the Size drop-down list, select the size to use or select Custom and enter the width and height in pixels. On the Orientation group, select the Landscape option.