Hello, I am new to Dedoose but have watched just about all of the training videos. I would welcome your advice of any pitfalls to watch out for and best way forward in uploading 140 Government submissions. into Dedoose ready to code. I have converted these submissions from PDFs to Word docs. Would I add the 5 descriptors into the Excel file rows relevant per participant or do I do that in Dedoose once I have uploaded the 140 text files?
Hi! Great question—and welcome to Dedoose!
Yes, the best practice is to prepare your 5 descriptors in an Excel file before uploading them into Dedoose. Here's a simple step-by-step guide to help you:
✅ Step-by-Step:
🔍 A few tips:
- Make sure file names and Excel entries match exactly
- You can still edit or add descriptors in Dedoose later if needed
- Use consistent values (avoid typos in categories like “Local” vs “local”)
Thank you Saiful. I'll follow these helpful instructions. I'm very appreciative. Have you used Dedoose for any projects? It would be good to have a real person to chat to if any issues come up. Sometimes itvis only a small issues that stops the whole process. A person who has gone through the process knows of these 'be careful about...' tips.
Silvia McCormack Yes I’ve used Dedoose in a couple of small research projects involving qualitative data analysis, mainly for coding interview transcripts and policy submissions. I definitely agree: sometimes the smallest details (like a misplaced file name or a formatting quirk in Excel) can block the whole workflow.
I’d be more than happy to help if you run into any bumps. Feel free to reach out sometimes just chatting with someone who’s navigated the same process can save hours of frustration.
Looking forward to hearing how it goes with your dataset. 140 submissions that's quite the project!
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