# Convert a checklist into a Datumvia list **For the person using this:** copy everything on this page, paste it into ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot or Gemini, then attach or paste your checklist. You'll get back a text file to import in Datumvia (Checklist → Edit templates → Import a list from a file). Before you upload, remove anything you shouldn't share, such as client names, addresses or signatures. A blank copy of the checklist is best. --- ## Instructions for the AI You are converting an inspection checklist into a plain-text file that the Datumvia app imports. The user will attach or paste the checklist (a PDF, a Word file, a spreadsheet, a photo or pasted text). Follow these rules exactly. The app reads the file literally, so the format matters more than presentation. ### What to produce A plain-text file (`.txt`, UTF-8). One file per checklist. If the document holds more than one separate checklist, produce one file for each. ### The format 1. **Items:** one item per line, written exactly as they appear in the source. 2. **Headings:** a line ending with a colon is a heading. Everything below it belongs to that heading until the next one. Use the source's own section headings. 3. **Answers (optional first line):** by default every item is answered Pass, Fail or N/A. Only if the source uses different answers (status codes, Yes/No, Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory, Compliant/Non-compliant) start the file with one line: ``` Answers: A = Inspected, B = Repairs made, C = Repairs required, D = Urgent repairs, E = Do not use ``` The part before each `=` is the button label and what prints in the report, so keep it short (6 characters or fewer). The part after it is the meaning, shown beside the answer. Separate answers with commas. Plain labels without meanings are allowed: `Answers: Yes, No, N/A`. Include an N/A-type answer if the source has one. Answers belong to the whole list; never put them on individual item lines. 4. **Which answer is a concern, item by item (optional).** The app treats the failing answer in the `Answers:` line as the concern for every item: for `Answers: Yes, No, N/A` that is **No**. When an item is the other way round, add the concerning answer in square brackets with an exclamation mark at the end of the line: ``` Answers: Yes, No, N/A Am I trained, competent and authorised for this task? Can I slip, trip or fall? [!Yes] ``` Look for how the source shows this: a bold, shaded or outlined box in one column, a note such as "if the bold box is ticked, describe the hazard", or a column headed "Action required". If the concern flips from item to item (as on a Take 5 or pre-start safety check), mark **every** item, including the ones that match the default, so nobody editing the list later needs to know which way the default runs. On an ordinary list where only a few items are phrased the other way, mark just those. Use the answer exactly as it appears in the `Answers:` line. 5. **Discipline (optional line).** The trade the checklist belongs to, so it can be filtered in a long list of checklists. Put it at the top, next to any `Answers:` line: ``` Discipline: Electrical ``` Use a short, common name: Structural, Building, Electrical, Solar & battery, Hydraulic, Mechanical, Fire, Civil, Safety. Leave the line out if the discipline isn't clear. ### Rules that stop the import going wrong - **Keep the wording exactly as it is.** Do not reword, shorten, correct or "improve" items. Many checklists are controlled documents or quote a standard, and a reworded item is a different item. You may fix obvious OCR or scanning errors only, and must list every such fix afterwards. - **Do not invent items.** Convert only what is there. If something is unclear, keep it as written and flag it afterwards. - **An item written entirely in capitals must be changed to sentence case.** A short line in capitals is read as a heading. Change the case only, not the words. - **An item must not end with a colon.** Remove a trailing colon from any item, or it becomes a heading. - **No numbering or bullets needed.** Leave them off. (If present they are stripped, so they do no harm.) - **Do not start a line with `#`.** Those lines are ignored as comments. - **Do not use tab characters.** The app keeps only the text before the first tab. - **Leave out anything that is not a check:** instructions, notes to the inspector, sign-off blocks, "Inspector name", "Date", "Comments" boxes, page headers and footers. List them afterwards so the user knows what was dropped. (Datumvia records the inspector, date and comments itself.) - **Items that are really a sub-list** (for example "Check the following: a) … b) … c) …"): make each sub-point its own item, prefixed with its parent so it still reads on its own, for example `Fire door hardware - closer adjusted`. ### How to reply 1. A suggested file name, based on the checklist's title (the file name becomes the list name in the app), for example `Pool fence - final.txt`. 2. The file itself: as a downloadable `.txt` file if you can create files, otherwise in a single code block and nothing else inside it. 3. A short **Please check** list, only as long as it needs to be: - anything left out, and why; - any wording you changed (case changes, OCR fixes); - the answers you chose, and why, if you added an `Answers:` line; - how you decided which answer is the concern on each item, if you added `[!…]` markers; - anything you were unsure of. ### Example Source (from a PDF): ``` POOL BARRIER INSPECTION Form PB-02 Barrier 1. FENCE HEIGHT 2. Gaps under fence max 100 mm Gate 3. Self-closing from any position 4. Latch at least 1500 above ground: Inspector: ________ Date: ________ Result: C = Compliant NC = Non-compliant N/A ``` Reply file, `Pool barrier inspection.txt`: ``` Answers: C = Compliant, NC = Non-compliant, N/A = Not applicable Barrier: Fence height Gaps under fence max 100 mm Gate: Self-closing from any position Latch at least 1500 above ground ``` Please check: "FENCE HEIGHT" changed to sentence case; trailing colon removed from the latch item; the form number, inspector and date lines left out (the app records those). ### Example: a safety check where the concern changes per question Source: three tick columns, YES / NO / N/A, with the box that needs explaining printed in bold, and the note "If bold box is ticked, describe hazards and controls overleaf". ``` IDENTIFY THE HAZARDS YES NO N/A Am I fit to perform this task? [ ] [B] [ ] Can I slip, trip or fall? [B] [ ] [ ] Is the work area neat and tidy? [ ] [B] [ ] ``` ([B] marks the bold box.) Reply file: ``` Answers: Yes, No, N/A Identify the hazards: Am I fit to perform this task? [!No] Can I slip, trip or fall? [!Yes] Is the work area neat and tidy? [!No] ``` Please check: every item is marked because the concerning answer changes between questions; the markers follow the bold boxes. In the app, picking a marked answer asks for a note straight away, which does the job of "describe hazards and controls overleaf".