Data Validation Editor

The Data Validation Editor allows you to validate time series data by selecting individual locations (via icons) or using pre-defined lists (list mode). Before validating, you can filter the data to show only datasets with known issues. The editor supports both text-based and graphical editing.

Accessing the Data Validation Editor

You can access the Data Validation Editor in the Acquisition tab in two ways:

• Click Data Validation, or
• Right-click a time series icon and select Validate.

The Select Data Validation Sets dialog appears, allowing you to choose the validation mode and customize some options prior to accessing the Data Validation Editor.

Icons Mode

In Icons mode, select time series icons from the map window or from the table in the Data Status Summary dialog.

List Mode

In List mode, select a validation list file for validation.

Display Options

Before opening the Data Validation Editor, the dialog offers several options:

• Show Data for Full Time Window: When selected, the editor will display the entire time window, even if data is only available for part of it. If unchecked, the view will be limited to the period where data exists, trimming any empty time spans.
  • The editor uses the time window settings configured in the Acquisition Tab.
• Location Display Options: You can choose to display all locations or only those with specific quality flags—Questionable, Missing, and/or Rejected.

Menu Bar Commands

The commands available from the Data Validation Editor Menus are:

File Menu

• Save - Saves any changes made in the editor to the database. 
• Print Table - Adjusts print settings and print the tabular view.
• Print Graph - Adjusts print settings and print the graph.
• Page Setup - Configures page settings for printing.
• Close - Exits the Data Validation Editor.

Edit Menu

• Restore Original Data - Reloads data from the database (only available if unsaved changes exist).
• Always Estimate Missing - Toggles on/off automatic estimation of missing values.
• Add Data - Adds new rows to the the table before or after the time window.

View Menu

• Show Comparison Data - Display comparison time series if included in your validation list.
• Show Decimal Places - Lets you define how many decimal places to display.

Options Menu

• Edit All Data - Allows editing of all data, not just data flagged as problematic. 
• Save in Background - Enables background saving while continuing to edit.
• Scale Plot to Raw Data - Adjusts the graph scale to include all data values, including raw values.
• Storage Rule - These rules determine how incoming data is handled in relation to existing data:
  • Delete Insert - Removes all unprotected data in the time window. Replaces unprotected data with incoming values. Incoming data is discarded where protected data exists.
  • Replace All - Replaces all unprotected data with incoming values. Protected data is preserved.
  • Do Not Replace - Incoming data is merged but discarded if corresponding data already exists.
  • Replace Missing Values Only - Only replaces missing (unprotected) data. Protected or existing non-missing data is preserved.
  • Replace with Non Missing - Replaces unprotected data with incoming non-missing values. Protected data is preserved.

Data Editing Features

Use the Selected Data Set to choose the time series data you want to view or modify.

By default, only data marked as rejected (R), questionable (Q), or missing (M) can be edited. These quality flags are shown in the Original column of the tabular view. To edit all values, enable Edit All Data from the Options menu.

Comparing Datasets

To compare datasets from your validation list:

• Check Show Comparison in Plot, or
• Select Show Comparison Data from the View menu.

Graphical Editing Area

The top section of the Data Validation Editor is the graphical editing area, displaying a visual plot of the  the selected dataset(s).

• Blue Line: Represents validated and transformed (revised) data.
• Green Line: Represents raw data received directly from data streams.

The portion of data currently visible in the tabular data area is highlighted by a green-hatched column in the plot. A vertical red line appears within this column to indicate the specific record selected in the tabular data.

Graphical Editing Tools

The Data Validation Editor includes several tools for interacting with and modifying data visually:

• Pointer/Selector Tool 
  • Use this tool to navigate through the plot and select data points.
  • To select a range, click the first point, hold SHIFT, and click the last point. 
• Zoom Tool
  • Allows you to zoom into specific areas of the plot.
  • Click and drag to draw a rectangle around the area you want to magnify.
  • To zoom out, right-click repeatedly.
• Single Point Edit Tool 
  • Enables you to select an individual or multiple data points, estimate values, and set quality flags.
• Multi-Point Edit Tool 
  • Allows you to redraw sections of the plot by sketching new lines directly onto the graph.

Shortcut Menus and Property Editors

You can customize the look and behavior of the graphical area by right-clicking elements and selecting Edit Properties. 

Each element offers its own property editor:

• Polygon Properties - Customize the green-hatched column’s border and background.
• Viewport Properties - Modify the plot’s border, background, and gridlines. You can also add markers.
• Axis Properties - Adjust axis scale, tick marks, and type. Customize label font, alignment, borders, and color.
• Legend Properties - Move the legend to the right or bottom of the plot, or hide it entirely.
• Curve Properties - Edit visual and data properties of the curves shown in the plot.
• Specific Record Properties - Customize the vertical red line that indicates the selected data record in the tabular view.

Tabular Data Area

The bottom section of the Data Validation Editor is the tabular data area, allowing for direct text-entry editing of time series data. It displays various data states, provides editable fields, and supports inserting, modifying, and deleting values.

Table Columns

The following columns are available from the table:

• Date/Time - Shows the timestamp of each data point and includes time zone information in the header.
• Raw - Displays unprocessed data received from data streams, along with any associated quality flags.
• Original - Contains validated or transformed (revised) data, also with quality flags.
• Estimate/Entry - Editable column for modifying data values.
  • White cells - Editable.
  • Gray cells - Protected (passed validation). To enable editing, check the Edit All Data box or select it from the Options menu.
• Revised - Shows accepted/corrected values along with their quality flags.

Quality Flags

These flags describe the status or origin of a data point.

Other Editing Commands

• Linear Fill - Fills selected rows with values linearly interpolated between the start and end points.
• Repeat Fill - Repeats the first value across the selected rows.
• Add Constant - Adds a user-specified constant to the values in the Estimate/Entry column.
• Multiply Factor - Multiplies values in the Estimate/Entry column by a specified constant.

Accepting and Estimating Data

• Accept - Copies selected row edits to the Revised column (changes stored in memory, not yet saved to the database).
• Accept All - Accepts all edited values in the table.
• Estimate - Automatically fills in selected missing data based on valid neighboring data in the Original column.
• Estimate All - Fills in all missing data in the table using surrounding valid values.

For estimation, selected rows must be bracketed by acceptable (non-missing) values.

Saving and Undoing Changes

To save your changes back to the database, click the Save icon or choose Save from the File menu. To undo changes made since the last save, click the Undo icon.

Once you save, changes cannot be undone.

Additional Resources

Refer to this series of guides for more information on validating and editing data using the Data Validation Editor.