Datasets are named lists of sites that can be tracked over time. They are useful when you want to keep track of a subset of all of the sites, for example, a list of water points that were imported together, or a list of communities need to be regularly reviewed.
In general, it's better to track sites through filters rather than datasets if possible. For example, if you want to regularly review protected dug wells that are managed by your organization in a particular country, it is better to make a filter with those parameters rather than use a data set. The reason is that the data set will not automatically include any new sites that match these criteria, whereas the filter will always be up-to-date.
Creating Datasets
Datasets are automatically created when a set of sites are imported from a spreadsheet. This is to help you keep track of imports and allow easy deleting of a group of sites that were incorrectly imported.
Datasets can also be created on the
Sites page using the
Manage Datasets link and clicking on
New.
You will need to set the permissions for any newly created dataset:
- Admin - Can edit and delete the entire dataset
- Edit - Can edit the name of the dataset, add and remove sites
- Add only - Can add sites to the dataset but not remove them
- View - Can view the contents of the dataset (note: the user still needs to be able to see the underlying site as well as the dataset. This does not share otherwise private sites)
Adding and Removing Sites
To add or remove sites from a dataset, open the Manage tab and select the sites you want to add or remove using the checkboxes on the left of the list:
Then click on the
Datasets button in the header. You can then select which data sets you want to add or remove the selected points from. A site can be in more than one data set at a time.
Filtering by Dataset
Select the dataset in the right-hand pane to limit to a particular dataset.
Bulk Editing
It's possible to edit all the water points in a dataset at once, changing a particular property while keeping the individual names and GPS coordinates intact.
First select the dataset in the right-hand pane in Manage. Then select all sites using the dropdown at the top left of the list, clicking on "All":
