As the variations in required questions may be only minimal, it is possible to clone existing questions - retaining all the associated attributes - and apply the relevant changes to the new copy, thus saving time and effort.
The procedure to clone an entry in the question library is as follows:
- Navigate to Quick Menu > System > Configuration > Question Library. The Question Library window is displayed.
- Expand a category heading from the alphabetical list and select an associated question to be cloned, or type its name into the Search Questions field. By default the list is filtered to show Current questions. An alternative filter can be applied using the Select view drop-down field: Expired, Future or All combinations
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- Click on Clone Question 2. The Question Library window is populated with all the attributes of the source question.
- Enter a Question Name into the field provided i.e. the short description for the new question. By default, the source question name is displayed with an additional suffix of '1'
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- Amend the Question Label to reflect the required caption for the new question, as presented to the recipient on the associated form.
- Using the Response Data Type, Linked Object, Multiples and Applicable Companies drop-down fields, ensure that the selected parameter values are still valid for this cloned question and apply any required changes.
- Adjust the required response data type criteria, range or lookup list to control the permitted entries.
- Amend the Information Text field, as required, to reflect the supporting contextual data that is relevant to the question i.e. an introduction to the question, as presented to the recipient on the associated form.
- Amend the Help Text field, as required, to reflect the tool tip that will aid the recipient in their response.
- Amend the Effective from date for this question, as required i.e. the date on which it came into effect 3.
- Amend the Effective to date if the question is to be reviewed on a specific date or to capture a change of circumstances; a blank field means the question will be continually valid.
- Click on Save. The cloned question appears in the alphabetical list, underneath the associated category 4.
Tip
1 To aid in identification and extended searching opportunities, it is good practice to devise and uphold a consistent naming convention for all question names.
Note
1 The Search Questions field will match against any element of the question name.
2 Only user defined question types can be cloned.
3 The Effective from date defaults to the current system date and cannot be left blank.
4 To amend the details of an existing library question, expand the category heading, select an associated question (or type its name into the Search Questions field) and repeat steps 5 through 12 (only a limited number of fields can be updated once a record has been created). The end user is asked to affirm that all associated form templates will be updated with the revised question attributes; clicking on Close will stop the action, allowing for an alternative question to be created.
See related topics...
Question library management overview
To create a new entry in the question library
