Multi-Column Question

In this article
How to Add a Multi-Column Question
How to Set Up each Column Type
Column Settings
Options Settings

A Multi-Column question can have different question types within each column. An example of this would be asking an Applicant for Educational History. Each Row would be for a different Educational Institution and each column can be used to gather information about that Institution.

How to Add a Multi-Column Question

Within your form, click on the Questions tab in the top left corner
Under Advanced Questions, double-click or click and drag the Multi-Column question to add it to your form.
Optional: Add an Identifier to your question
Enter the Question Title
Optional: Add a Description
Select your Column Types to add
Add your Rows. You can add the Rows individually by clicking Add or by clicking the Bulk button. You can add the variables in a list within the Bulk Editor.
i. Decide if the Row will be Required or Optional
Set the Column Settings
Set the +Display settings
Set the +Options settings

NOTE: You can add the Choices individually by clicking Add or by clicking the Bulk button. You can add the variables in a list within the Bulk Editor. You can also Add Other Choice which will automatically add a choice with an additional text response field to collect more information.

How to Set Up each Column Type

Within the Multi-Column Question you will be able to choose between 4 different types of Columns:

Dropdown

Decide if the Variable will be Required or Optional
Select the Blank Choice for the dropdown, this is the first choice in the dropdown list and will represent no response given.
Add your Choices. You can add the Choices individually by clicking Add or by clicking the Bulk button. You can add the variables in a list within the Bulk Editor.
Set your Choice Settings

Text Response

Decide if the Variable will be Required or Optional
Decide if the text response will be Multiline.
Set the Column width of the text field
Set +Additional Options

Checkbox

There are no additional steps for the Checkbox Column.

NOTE: You will not be able to make this choice a required selection. If you require it to be required we would recommend creating a Checkbox question

Radio Buttons

Decide if the Variable will be Required or Optional
Select the Appearance of the buttons: Vertical, Horizontal, Star Rating, or Combo Box
Add your Choices. You can add the Choices individually by clicking Add or by clicking the Bulk button. You can add the variables in a list within the Bulk Editor.
Set your Choice Settings

Column Settings

Choice Settings

These Settings are applicable to:

Dropdown
Radio Buttons

The available Multi-Column question Choice settings.

Choice Settings	Description
Score	Scoring allows you to assign a value to each choice. This is commonly used in Advanced Reviewer Forms. Choices will have Default Scoring applied automatically.
Randomize Choices	Selecting this option randomizes the choices upon each form refresh.
Alphabetize choices	Choices within your list will follow alphabetical order (A-Z). TIP! Use this if you are going to be adding choices to your form after already collecting data. This will allow you to maintain your alphabetical order without jeopardizing your data. Refer to How to Safely Make Changes to a Live Form for more information.

Additional Options

These Settings are applicable to:

Text Response

The available Multi-Column question additional options settings.

Additional Options	Descriptions
Validation	Add a restriction to what the user must enter into the field. For example, if you want to collect email addresses, then select email validation. Refer to How to Add Validation to a Text Response Question for more information.
Initial Value	Presents a default text response to the user. If you are using Piping Variables, you will input the variable into this field.
Sum	If you enter a number in this field, then all fields on the text response grid must add up to that number. If you wish to simply sum the Values in the grid you will need to enter a dash "-" in the field beside Sum in order to total the values entered. Entering any value in this field will cause the Total row to appear. NOTE: This field cannot be pulled into a report. If you require the SUM of this column to be included in a report we would recommend setting up a SUM Function using Advanced Expression Piping.
Sum Label	By default, this option is "The values of column: {x} should add up to {y}. Currently: {z}"
Restore Initial Value	When a user comes back to this form page, this question will have its default value. TIP! Use this if you are using Piping Variables within the question, it will ensure that the variable will look for the most up-to-date value. If this is not selected then as soon as the form is saved that response will remain. If the piping variable has been updated and you reenter the form the field will not update.

Display Settings

Display Option	Description
Make First Column Static	The first column refers to the Row labels. This setting forces the first column to always be visible. This is useful when you have many columns and the user must scroll horizontally through the table.
1st Column Size	The 1st column displays the Variable Labels. Adjusts the first columns width in comparison to width of the question. By default, this option is 30%. You can go as low as 10% of the question or as high as 90%. You cannot remove or hide the first column from the question.
Top Left Label	Attaches a label to the top left of the grid where the header row meets the first column. By default, this option is blank.
Sum Label	This label will appear underneath the Row Labels when you have the entered a value in the Sum field.
Display side-by-side	Display this question side by side with another question. This will need to be enabled on the other question as well.
Append to previous question	This question type appends to the question before it to make it appear that they are connected within the form. NOTE: Any Branching Logic, such as to hide or show the previous question, will also apply to this question. However, the requirement settings won't be. If it is meant to be hidden it will need to be included in the branching logic as well.
Width	You can adjust the width based on a percentage of the size of the page. By default, the value is 100% to make it to the fit the page size.
Show Borders	Show borders around the question.
Alternate Background Colour	Each Column will be an alternate shade/colour.

Options Settings

Options	Description
Show "Not Used" Column	Add a column to your question to allow your applicants to select the Row as "Not Used." NOTE: This can be useful if you have more rows in your question that you think your users will need. They will be able to select the checkbox in the Not Used column in order to "skip" a required row.
Text for “Not Used” Column	Specify the label for the “Not Used” column. The label is set to “Not Used” by default.
Randomize Variables	Selecting this option randomizes the rows upon each form refresh.
Alphabetize Variables	The rows within your question will appear in alphabetical order (A-Z).
Force Unique	Force a choice in a column to remain unique. No two options in a column can be identical.
Error Message for Unique Responses	A message that will show beneath the question informing the user of the restraint. By default this will be "Responses must be unique."