26-Jun-2008 How to get help using Analyse-it

Most of you know where to find the help and examples provided with Analyse-it, but if not, today we’d like to explain what’s available. If you're stuck we're always happy to help, and usually respond within a few hours, but it's always faster for you to check if the help answers your question first.

Getting started tutorial

If you’re new to Analyse-it, or want a quick refresher, the best place to start is the Getting Started tutorial. It’s completely automated, no typing is required, so all you have to do is sit back and watch. In just 10 minutes it will demonstrate how to setup a dataset, how to filter the dataset, how to run a statistical test, and how to edit, refresh, and print the reports.

To watch the tutorial:

1. Browse to /userguide/gettingstarted.aspx
2. The tutorial will start to play. It requires Adobe Flash.
3. In full it's 10 minutes, but you can jump to any section -- hover over the “Jump to section” link at the top-left of the tutorial, then choose the feature you want to see.

Help when you’re using Analyse-it

The application help provided with Analyse-it is a complete reference covering all aspects of Analyse-it: how to install Analyse-it, start it, layout datasets, manage reports, and how to use the statistical tests. You can either browse the contents to learn about Analyse-it, or use the index or search to quickly find the right topic. Index and search were only recently added to the help, in Analyse-it 2.10, so if you’re not using the latest version download it now.

To open the help: 

1. Start Analyse-it
2. Click the Help button on the Analyse-it toolbar (see below):
   
    
3. Analyse-it opens the help. Click the Contents, Index, or Search tab (see below) depending on how you want to navigate the help:
   
   

Help on the statistical test you’re using

Most questions arise when using a statistical test -- what are the assumptions for this test, how do I use the test, and how do I interpret the statistics? Help topics for every statistical test in Analyse-it are included, explaining what the test does, what the assumptions are, common tasks using the test, and references to further reading on how the test implemented and the statistics calculated. 

To get help for the test you’re using:

1. Start Analyse-it
2. Choose the test you want to use from the Analyse-it toolbar, or click Edit on the Analyse-it toolbar if you have an Analyse-it report worksheet active.
3. Click the Help button on the test dialog box shown (see below):
   
   
4. Analyse-it opens the help topic for the test.

Learning by example

Sometimes it’s easier to learn from an example -- actually seeing how it's done is easier than reading about it. If you’re stuck and want to see an example dataset and report that you can then use as a template, take a look at the examples. We’ve included sample datasets and reports for almost every statistical test in Analyse-it.

To access the examples:

1. Start Analyse-it
2. On the Analyse-it toolbar click the Further Resources button then choose Examples (see below):
   
    
3. Analyse-it opens the examples folder, containing the example Excel workbooks.

In future we plan to blog about how to use specific features and statistical tests in Analyse-it. Your comments on these topics will help us ensure we concentrate our time and efforts on problem areas. Post a comment now and tell us what you think of the help and, more importantly, where we can improve it.