Pre-assignment of column locations (or "precoding") was the rule for many years. Today, with the use of computer data entry programs, the operator can be prompted on screen with question text, field names, or other prompts to guide them through a complicated survey. Printing of column locations is generally no longer necessary, and surveys can be produced without any strict formatting requirements. However, we always recommend having us preview a survey draft before final printing or fielding. There may be minor modifications we can suggest to facilitate the data entry process.