Data entry

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Data entry is the process of digitizing data by entering it into a computer system for organization and management purposes. It is a person-based process [1] and is "one of the important basic" [2] tasks needed when no machine-readable version of the information is readily available for planned computer-based analysis or processing. [3]

Contents

Sometimes what is needed is "information about information (that) can be greater than the value of the information itself." [4] It can also involve filling in required information which is then "data-entered" from what was written on the research document, such as the growth in available items in a category. [4] :68 This is a higher level of abstraction [5] than metadata, "information about data." [6] Common errors in data entry include transposition errors, misclassified data, duplicate data, and omitted data, which are similar to bookkeeping errors.

Procedures

Data entry is often done with a keyboard and at times also using a mouse, [7] although a manually-fed scanner may be involved. [8]

Historically, devices lacking any pre-processing capabilities were used. [9]

Keypunching

The woman at left is at an IBM 056 Card Verifier; to her right is a woman sitting at an IBM 026 Keypunch Keypunching at Texas A&M2.jpg
The woman at left is at an IBM 056 Card Verifier; to her right is a woman sitting at an IBM 026 Keypunch

Data entry using keypunches was related to the concept of batch processing – there was no immediate feedback. [10] [11]

Computer keyboards

Computer keyboards and online data-entry provide the ability to give feedback to the data entry clerk doing the work. [12] [13]

Numeric keypads

The addition of numeric keypads to computer keyboards [14] introduced quicker and often also less error-prone entry of numeric data. [15]

Computer mouse

The use of a computer mouse, typically on a personal computer, opened up another option for doing data entry. [16]

Touch screens

Touch screens introduced even more options, including the ability to stand and do data entry, [16] especially given "a proper height of work surface when performing data entry."

Spreadsheets

Although most data entered into a computer are stored in a database, a significant amount is stored in a spreadsheet. [17] The use of spreadsheets instead of databases for data entry can be traced to the 1979 introduction of Visicalc, [18] and what some consider the wrong place [19] for storing computational data continues. [20]

Format control [21] and specialized data validation are reasons that have been cited for using database-oriented data entry software. [22] [23]

Data managements

The search for assurance about the accuracy of the data entry process predates computer keyboards and online data entry. [24] [25] IBM even went beyond their 056 Card Verifier and developed their quieter IBM 059 model. [26]

Modern techniques go beyond mere range checks, especially when the new data can be evaluated using probability about an event. [27]

Assessment

In one study, a medical school tested its second year students and found their data entry skills – needed if they are to do small-scale unfunded research as part of their training – were below what the school considered acceptable, creating potential barriers. [2] [28]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Punched card</span> Paper-based recording medium

A punched card is a piece of card stock that stores digital data using punched holes. Punched cards were once common in data processing and the control of automated machines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spreadsheet</span> Computer application for organization, analysis, and storage of data in tabular form

A spreadsheet is a computer application for computation, organization, analysis and storage of data in tabular form. Spreadsheets were developed as computerized analogs of paper accounting worksheets. The program operates on data entered in cells of a table. Each cell may contain either numeric or text data, or the results of formulas that automatically calculate and display a value based on the contents of other cells. The term spreadsheet may also refer to one such electronic document.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Machine-readable medium and data</span> Medium capable of storing data in a format readable by a machine

In communications and computing, a machine-readable medium is a medium capable of storing data in a format easily readable by a digital computer or a sensor. It contrasts with human-readable medium and data.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SPSS</span> Statistical analysis software

SPSS Statistics is a statistical software suite developed by IBM for data management, advanced analytics, multivariate analysis, business intelligence, and criminal investigation. Long produced by SPSS Inc., it was acquired by IBM in 2009. Versions of the software released since 2015 have the brand name IBM SPSS Statistics.

Verification or verify may refer to:

A personal identification number (PIN), or sometimes redundantly a PIN number or PIN code, is a numeric passcode used in the process of authenticating a user accessing a system.

Electronic data processing (EDP) or business information processing can refer to the use of automated methods to process commercial data. Typically, this uses relatively simple, repetitive activities to process large volumes of similar information. For example: stock updates applied to an inventory, banking transactions applied to account and customer master files, booking and ticketing transactions to an airline's reservation system, billing for utility services. The modifier "electronic" or "automatic" was used with "data processing" (DP), especially c. 1960, to distinguish human clerical data processing from that done by computer.

In computer science, a record is a basic data structure. Records in a database or spreadsheet are usually called "rows".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comma-separated values</span> File format used to store data

Comma-separated values (CSV) is a text file format that uses commas to separate values, and newlines to separate records. A CSV file stores tabular data in plain text, where each line of the file typically represents one data record. Each record consists of the same number of fields, and these are separated by commas in the CSV file. If the field delimiter itself may appear within a field, fields can be surrounded with quotation marks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keypunch</span> Device for punching holes into paper cards

A keypunch is a device for precisely punching holes into stiff paper cards at specific locations as determined by keys struck by a human operator. Other devices included here for that same function include the gang punch, the pantograph punch, and the stamp. The term was also used for similar machines used by humans to transcribe data onto punched tape media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Data entry clerk</span> Profession

A data entry clerk, also known as data preparation and control operator, data registration and control operator, and data preparation and registration operator, is a member of staff employed to enter or update data into a computer system. Data is often entered into a computer from paper documents using a keyboard. The keyboards used can often have special keys and multiple colors to help in the task and speed up the work. Proper ergonomics at the workstation is a common topic considered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Power-on self-test</span> Process performed by firmware or software routines

A power-on self-test (POST) is a process performed by firmware or software routines immediately after a computer or other digital electronic device is powered on.

In computing, an archive file is a computer file that is composed of one or more files along with metadata. Many archive formats also support compression of member files. Archive files are used to collect multiple data files together into a single file for easier portability and storage, or simply to compress files to use less storage space. Archive files often store directory structures, error detection and correction information, comments, and some use built-in encryption.

A computer operator is a role in IT which oversees the running of computer systems, ensuring that the machines, and computers are running properly. The job of a computer operator as defined by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics is to "monitor and control ... and respond to ... enter commands ... set controls on computer and peripheral devices. This Excludes Data Entry."

Metaphor Computer Systems (1982–1994) was an American computer company that created an advanced workstation, database gateway, unique graphical office interface, and software applications that "seamlessly integrate" data from both internal and external sources. The Metaphor machine was one of the first commercial workstations to offer a complete hardware/software package and a GUI, including "a wireless mouse and a wireless five-function key pad". Although the company achieved some commercial success, it never achieved the fame of either the Apple Macintosh or Microsoft Windows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Two-pass verification</span>

Two-pass verification, also called double data entry, is a data entry quality control method that was originally employed when data records were entered onto sequential 80-column Hollerith cards with a keypunch. In the first pass through a set of records, the data keystrokes were entered onto each card as the data entry operator typed them. On the second pass through the batch, an operator at a separate machine, called a verifier, entered the same data. The verifier compared the second operator's keystrokes with the contents of the original card. If there were no differences, a verification notch was punched on the right edge of the card.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Computer keyboard</span> Data input device

A computer keyboard is a peripheral input device modeled after the typewriter keyboard which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches. Replacing early punched cards and paper tape technology, interaction via teleprinter-style keyboards have been the main input method for computers since the 1970s, supplemented by the computer mouse since the 1980s.

A file format is a standard way that information is encoded for storage in a computer file. It specifies how bits are used to encode information in a digital storage medium. File formats may be either proprietary or free.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metadata</span> Data about data

Metadata is "data that provides information about other data", but not the content of the data itself, such as the text of a message or the image itself. There are many distinct types of metadata, including:

The term digital card can refer to a physical item, such as a memory card on a camera, or, increasingly since 2017, to the digital content hosted as a virtual card or cloud card, as a digital virtual representation of a physical card. They share a common purpose: Identity Management, Credit card, Debit card or driver license. A non-physical digital card, unlike a Magnetic stripe card can emulate (imitate) any kind of card.

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  28. "found to be lacking in more than half of the respondents."