Documentation

Importing SPSS Data Files into Tabx

Before uploading your SPSS file, ensure you have made the appropriate changes to its structure. Read how here.

Importing SPSS data files is quick and easy in Tabx:

1. Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
2. Browse to the  Projects tab.
3. Click the  Upload a Project button at the top of this tab.
4. Once on the  Add Project page, ensure you are on the  SPSS tab.
5. Ensure you read the  Before you upload… section. Read How to structure SPSS files for analysis to understand how Tabx needs your data in your SPSS file.
6. Click Choose File to select your .sav data file on your computer.
7. Type in a Project Name. This is for internal use only and is not output anywhere on tables or charts. This cannot be the same as another project within your License.
8. Click the  Submit button.
9. Once uploaded, you will redirected to the  Account page and see an orange confirmation box appear confirming the project was uploaded, or queued for upload. After your project has been imported, you will receive an email with either a success or failure message, alongside a desctription of what was ignored / why the upload was a failure. If your SPSS project import was a success, the message that details which fields were ignored is saved to be accessed again at any time by viewing the  Options tab when on the  Edit Project page.

Importing CSV / XLSX Data Files into Tabx

Importing CSV /XLSX data files is quick and easy in tabx:

1. Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
2. Browse to the  Projects tab.
3. Click the  Upload a Project button at the top of this tab.
4. Once on the  Add Project page, ensure you are on the  CSV / XLSX tab.
5. Ensure you read the  Before you upload… section.
6. Click Choose File to select your .xlsx data file on your computer.
7. Type in a Project Name. This is for internal use only and is not output anywhere on tables or charts. This cannot be the same as another project within your License.
8. Click the  Submit button.
9. Once uploaded, you will redirected to the  Account page and see an orange confirmation box appear confirming the project was uploaded. After your project has been uploaded, you will see either a success or failure message, alongside a desctription of what was ignored / why the upload was a failure. If your CSV / XLSX project upload was a success, the message that details which fields were ignored is saved to be accessed again at any time by viewing the  Options tab when on the  Edit Project page.

Formatting a CSV / XLSX Fle for Uploading to Tabx

Click here to download the XLSX template file.

Click here to download an example project using the XLSX template file.

Using the CSV / XLSX upload feature means you can import data from sources other than SPSS into Tabx. To use the XLSX template file:

1. Follow the instructions within the file (on the worksheet “How to use”) to populate your data and meta data.
2. Ensure Row 1 on the “Data” sheet has no blank cells between columns. All columns must have a field name.
3. Ensure ALL fields are represented on the “Variables” worksheet, and have been assigned a display ready label and type.
4. Ensure all “Categorical” type variables have corresponding answers on the “Answers” sheet.

Importing SSS Data Files into Tabx

Importing SSS data files is quick and easy in Tabx:

1. Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
2. Browse to the  Projects tab.
3. Click the  Upload a Project button at the top of this tab.
4. Once on the  Add Project page, ensure you are on the  SSS tab.
5. Ensure you read the  Before you upload… section.
6. Click Choose File to select your .xml data file on your computer.
7. Click Choose File to select your .csv data file on your computer.
8. Type in a Project Name. This is for internal use only and is not output anywhere on tables or charts. This cannot be the same as another project within your License.
9. Click the  Submit button.
10. Once uploaded, you will redirected to the  Account page and see an orange confirmation box appear confirming the project was uploaded, or queued for upload. After your project has been imported, you will receive an email with either a success or failure message, alongside a desctription of what was ignored / why the upload was a failure. If your SPSS project import was a success, the message that details which fields were ignored is saved to be accessed again at any time by viewing the  Options tab when on the  Edit Project page.

Basic Project Management in Tabx

After a project has been uploaded it can be edited to manage the structure of the Interrogate, Dashboard or  Analysis tools. When editing a project, you can:

• Rename any of the 20 variable  Groups.
• Re-label any  Variable
  • Re-label any Answer Category in that  Variable
• Assign a  Variable to a  Group
• Assign a  Variable as a  Filter.
• Assign a  Variable as a  Subset.
• Construct  Multi type Variables.
• Define  Answer Sets to use with  Multi type Variables.
• Create  Derived Variables.
• Enable / Disable  Charts in a Project.
• Manage  Dashboards in a Project.
• View and Edit a Project  Options.

Editing a Project

• Log in to tabx by browsing to https://www.tabx.online/use/login/ using the License Administration User details or as a User that has been marked as an Editor in your license.
• Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
• Browse to the  Projects Tab.
• Click the  Edit button for the Project you wish to edit, on the Projects table.

Project Locks

Tabx allows access to the Edit Project tool by potentially many users. To prevent data sync issues, a Project becomes locked whenever a user launches the Edit Project tool.

Project locks follow these rules:

• Only one User may edit a project at one time. On the Account (or Projects) page, a lock symbol will replace the Edit button for a given project if that project becomes locked.
• Once a user has finished using the Edit Project tool and navigates away from it, the project will automatically unlock within 3 minutes for other users to be able to access. On the Account (or Projects) page, this will happen automatically – the Edit button for that project will reappear.
• After 30 minutes of using the Edit Project tool, the user will be asked if they are still working on this project. They then have 10 minutes to respond, before being automatically redirected back to the Account (or Projects) page – in which case the project will automatically unlock. However, if they respond “Yes” (i.e. they are still working on this project) the project will remain locked for a further 30 minutes, and so on. The countdown timer displays how long left until the next prompt in the top right of the Edit Project tool.

Renaming the  Groups

By default the groups are named “Group 1” to “Group 20”. These groups correspond with the drop down groups seen in the settings dialogue in the Interrogate, Dashboard or  Analysis tools. To change these labels:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Groups tab.
• Find the Group you wish to change and type in a new name for that group, overwriting any text currently in that text box.
• Click the  Save Groups button. You should see a yellow confirmation box appear at the top of the page confirming the Groups have been saved.

Variables

The Variables tab houses all the meta data about the variables within your project. The left hand pane displays the list of variables within your project – the right hand pane updates to reflect the currently chosen variable. You can search for a specific variable using the “Search for Variables” box above the variables list.

Re-label a Variable

To re-label a  Variable:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Variables tab.
• Find and click the Variable you wish to re-label from the list of variables on the left of this tab.
• Once the Variable has loaded on the right hand section of this tab, type in your text changes into the Variable Label text box.
• Click the  Save Variable button. You should see this button change to a  check mark to indicate the changes have been saved.

Re-label a Variable’s Answer Categories

To re-label a  Variable’s Answer Categories:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Variables tab.
• Find and click the Variable you wish to re-label from the list of variables on the left of this tab.
• Once the Variable has loaded on the right hand section of this tab, type in your text changes into one of this Variable’s Answer Category Label text boxes.
• Click the  Save Variable button. You should see this button change to a  check mark to indicate the changes have been saved.

Assign a Variable to a Group

To assign a   Variable to a  Group within a project:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Variables tab.
• Find and click the Variable you wish to assign to a  Group from the list of variables on the left of this tab.
• Once the Variable has loaded on the right hand section of this tab, select a new group from the drop down.
• You should see the  Save Variable button change to a  check mark to indicate the changes have been saved.

If a variable is assigned “No Group”, then it will not appear within the Interrogate, Dashboard or Analysis tools. Therefore, to remove a variable from use within a project, change its assigned group to “No Group”. Numeric type variables (i.e. none categorical) cannot be assigned to a group, and therefore the drop down box for its group will be empty.

Assign a Variable as a Filter

To assign a   Variable as a  Filterwithin a project:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Variables tab.
• Find and click the Variable you wish to assign as a  Filter from the list of variables on the left of this tab.
• Once the Variable has loaded on the right hand section of this tab, ensure the Filter checkbox is checked.
• Click the  Save Variable button. You should see the  Save Variable button change to a  check mark to indicate the changes have been saved.

Some variables cannot be assigned as a filter as they are Numeric fields. In these cases, the checkbox will be disabled.

Assign a Variable as a Subset

To assign a   Variable as a  Subsetwithin a project:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Variables tab.
• Find and click the Variable you wish to assign as a  Subset from the list of variables on the left of this tab.
• Once the Variable has loaded on the right hand section of this tab, ensure the Subset checkbox is checked.
• Click the  Save Variable button. You should see the  Save Variable button change to a  check mark to indicate the changes have been saved.

Some variables cannot be assigned as a subset as they are Numeric fields. In these cases, the checkbox will be disabled.

Construct Multi Type Variables

Please see Working with Multi Type Variables in tabx

Create User Defined (Derived / Net) Variables

Please see Working with User Defined (Derived or Net) Variables in tabx

Managing Dashboards

Any Dashboards that your Project contains will be listed on the Dashboards tab.

Read Only Dashboard Sharing

Every Dashboard created in Tabx can be shared as a “Read Only” version. To share a Tabx Dashboard:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the Dashboards tab.
• Copy the link in the Link column foir the Dashboard you wish to share.
• Distribute this link and the associated Access Key to allow anyone access to a read only version of that Dashboard.

Changing the Project Options

To change any of the below project options:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Options tab, then  Project Options inner tab.
• You can now:
  • Change the  Project Name
  • Change the  Project Source
  • Change the  Project Client
  • Change the  Project Description
  • View the  Original Filename
  • Change the  Project Brand
  • Enable / Disable  Charts in a Project.
  • Enable / Disable the auto generation of Archived Charts on project Excel Exports.
  • Enable / Disable hiding of tool buttons for users, based on access permissions for a project.
  • Manage any Appends to this Project’s data.
  • View the Import Information for this Project (List of ignored variables and Import Message etc).
  • View the Project Information, such as who last edited the project and what that action was.
  • (License and Projects Administrators only) Remove the Project. Note this will remove ALL data from Tabx regarding this project, including all Dashboards, Archived Charts, Charts and Tables. 

Defining User Access

To define which Users in the Tabx License have access to what projects:

• Browse to the  Edit page for the Project you wish to change, as per “Editing a Project” above.
• Browse to the  Options tab, then  User Access Matrix inner tab.

Note: License Administrators have access to all projects, all the time. Projects Administrators have automatic access to any projects they upload. All other users must be added to each project with a permission level.

For a guide on the different permission levels, please see Managing Users in a Tabx License.

User Defined (Derived or Net) Variables in Tabx

Derived variables can be constructed quickly and easily in Tabx. Once created, Derived variables can be added to groups just like any other variable in the project, and used in the Interrogate, Dashboard or Analysis tools.

Creating a Derived Variable

To construct a Derived variable within a project:

• Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
• Browse to the  ProjectsTab.
• Click the  Edit button for the Project you wish to edit, on the Projects table.
• Browse to the Defined Variables tab, Derive New Variable sub-tab.
• Enter a name (code) for the new variable in the 1. New Variable Name text box.
• Enter a label for the new variable in the 2. New Variable Label text box.
• Choose a group from the 3. Group select box.
• Select a variable from the 4. Select Root Variables select box. This will load the chosen variable into the 5. Create New Answer Categories area. In Tabx you can derive a variable from multiple source variables.
• Enter a New Answer Code (integer) value for a new answer category.
• Enter a New Answer Label for the new answer category.
• Select one or more answer categories from the chosen root variable.
• Click 6. Add New Answer Category. This will add this derived answer category definition to the Current Answer Categories box. Note that Tabx will also detail how many respondents are included within this answer category definition.
  • Repeat the above process until all definitions for the new Derived variable answer categories are made.
• PLEASE NOTE THIS HAS NOT SAVED THIS DERIVED VARIABLE INTO THE PROJECT YET. 
• NOTES
  • Each new answer category can be derived from one or more Root Variable’s answer categories. However, a derived variable can have new answer categories chosen from many root variables.
  • The respondent counts only display a count from each individual new answer category. The actual total base (unfiltered) may vary depending on the choice of root variables and root answer categories.
  • The New Answer Code box will automatically increment by one every time a new answer category is defined. This code can be overwritten if needed.
  • Tabx will show whether the derived variable being created will be a new Multi type, or new Single type variable.
• Click 7. Save New Variable to add this derived variable into the project. Any required fields that do not have a valid value will highlight in red. You should see a yellow confirmation box appear at the top of the page confirming the Derived Variable has been saved.
• NOTES
  • Newly added Derived variables can now be seen in the Current Derived Variables table on the User Defined Variables tab, the  Variables tab and the  Multis tab.
  • The added Derived variable will now be ready for use in the  Interrogate,  Dashboard or  Analysis tools.

Creating a Scalar Net Variable

In Tabx, it’s possible to net a scalar variable into a usable categorical question (For example, netting the field Ago into a new Age Goups variable).

• Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
• Browse to the  Projects Tab.
• Click the  Edit button for the Project you wish to edit, on the Projects table.
• Browse to the Defined Variables tab, Net Scalar Variable sub-tab.
• Enter a name (code) for the new variable in the 1. New Variable Name text box.
• Enter a label for the new variable in the 2. New Variable Label text box.
• Choose a group from the 3. Group select box.
• Select a variable from the 4. Select Root Scalar Variable select box. This will load the chosen variable into the 5. Create New Answer Categories area. In Tabx you can derive a variable from multiple source variables.
• Enter a New Answer Code (integer) value for a new answer category.
• Enter a New Answer Label for the new answer category.
• Define the range for the new answer category in the From and To boxes.
• Click 6. Add New Answer Category. This will add this derived answer category definition to the Current Answer Categories box.
  • Repeat the above process until all definitions for the new Derived variable answer categories are made.
• PLEASE NOTE THIS HAS NOT SAVED THIS DERIVED VARIABLE INTO THE PROJECT YET. 
• NOTES
  • Each new answer category can be derived from one or more Root Variable’s answer categories. However, a derived variable can have new answer categories chosen from many root variables.
  • The New Answer Code box will automatically increment by one every time a new answer category is defined. This code can be overwritten if needed.
  • Tabx will show whether the derived variable being created will be a new Multi type, or new Single type variable.
• Click 7. Save New Variable to add this derived variable into the project. Any required fields that do not have a valid value will highlight in red. You should see a yellow confirmation box appear at the top of the page confirming the Derived Variable has been saved.
• NOTES
  • Newly added Derived variables can now be seen in the Current Derived Variables table on the User Defined Variables tab, the  Variables tab and the  Multis tab.
  • The added Derived variable will now be ready for use in the  Interrogate,  Dashboard or  Analysis tools.

Removing a Derived Variable

Derived variables can be removed from a project easily:

• Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
• Browse to the  Projects Tab.
• Click the  Edit button for the Project you wish to edit, on the Projects table.
• Browse to the  User Defined Variables tab.
• Find the multi type variable you wish to remove on the Current Derived Variables table.
• Click and confirm the  button.
• You should see a yellow confirmation box confirming the project has been saved, and the Derived variable has been removed.
• WARNING: Removing Derived variables may cause a loss of configured charts and tables within Tabx, as any settings that included this variable will be reset.

Editing a Derived Variable

At any point, the Variable Label, the  Group and any Answer Category Labels can be modified for a Derived variable. To edit a Derived variable:

• Browse to the  Account page using the navigation at the top of the window.
• Browse to the  Projects Tab.
• Click the  Edit button for the Project you wish to edit, on the Projects table.
• Browse to the  Variables tab if the Derived variable is a Single type variable, or the Multis tab if the Dervied variable is a Multi type variable.
• Find the Derived variable you wish to edit in the Variables list or  Current Multis table respectively.
  • Enter any new text in the Variable Label box.
  • Click the  button to edit any Answer Category Labels
  • Choose a new Group from the Group select box.
  • PLEASE NOTE THIS HAS NOT SAVED THIS DERIVED VARIABLE’S CHANGES YET
• Click Save Variables.
• You should see a yellow confirmation box confirming the project has been saved, and the Derived variable has been edited.

Batch Script Automation in Tabx

Tabx offers a way to script the management of Single Categorical Variables, Multi Categorical variables and Groups within a Project. The Batch Script tool can be found in the Edit Project page > Script Tab. A Batch script is simply a spreadsheet with two columns inside: “Instruction” and “Value”.

When parsed and executed, Tabx walks through the instructions row by row and uses any value it needs to in the “Value” column.

Running a Batch Script

To run a Batch Script, simply upload the excel file and press Run. Tabx will display an output of all actions taken, as well as any errors within the script, after the script executes. To get a preview of what Tabx will do without making any additions or edits to the current Project, press Preview instead of Run. If the script output is correct, reupload the batch script to execute.

The available instructions are:

* Required as part of a Single type variable Definition
** Required as part of a Multi Definition

Script Rules

Your batch script must adhere to the following rules to execute correctly:

• Only entries in cell columns A and B will be parsed. Any values in cell columns C further will be ignored – notes can be kept in these columns.
• A “Definition” means all instructions between instructions START_NEW_MULTI and END_NEW_MULTI,  EDIT_MULTI and END_EDIT_MULTI, EDIT_SINGLE and END_EDIT_SINGLE, EDIT_GROUP and END_EDIT_GROUP.
  • A Multi Definition must include:
    • 1 of START_NEW_MULTI or 1 of EDIT_MULTI
    • 1 of MULTI_LABEL
    • 1 or more of MULTI_CATEGORY
    • 1 of END_NEW_MULTI or END_EDIT_MULTI
    • MULTI_GROUP and MULTI_FILTER instructions are always optional, and will use default values if not set (see table above).
• Rows can be blank between instruction rows. See example below.
• A header row of “Instruction” and “Value” is not required.
• The final instruction in the batch script must be either END_EDIT_SINGLE, END_NEW_MULTI, END_EDIT_MULTI or END_EDIT_GROUP.

Script Processing Behaviour

When executing your batch script, Tabx does the following:

• All new Multi Definitions are collected and added to the Project after the Batch Script has completed.
• When editing Multi’s, all existing answer categories are REMOVED before re-adding the newly defined answer categories within the Edit Multi Definition.

Example Script

Below is an example script that adds two new multi’s to the Project and edits the categories for existing Tabx Multi “M1”. It will only execute for the project named “Demo Project”.