Saving and sharing objects

Save EDSL objects to continue a study in another session or give a collaborator the materials needed to inspect and reuse it. An .ep file reopens as the same kind of EDSL object; a CSV is a table for analysis in other software. Choose what to save based on what you want to do next:

What you want to preserve	Save	Reopen with
The questionnaire and its logic	`survey.save("survey.ep")`	`Survey.load("survey.ep")`
The full planned model run, including its inputs	`job.save("job.ep")`	`Jobs.load("job.ep")`
Collected answers, prompts, and study information	`results.save("results.ep")`	`Results.load("results.ep")`
Selected columns for a report or statistical software	`results.select("answer.*").to_csv("answers.csv")`	Your usual CSV reader.

Loading a saved Results object lets you analyze the collected answers without making new model calls. Saving a job preserves what to run; it does not substitute for saving the completed results.

Save and reopen a survey

This example writes a local package and reads it back. It makes no model calls or uploads.

from edsl import QuestionFreeText, Survey

survey = Survey([QuestionFreeText(question_name="feedback", question_text="What should improve?")])
survey.save("feedback.ep")
restored = Survey.load("feedback.ep")
restored.question_names  # ['feedback']; the loaded survey is ready to use.

Use explicit .json or .json.gz filenames when you need JSON instead of a package. For keeping named versions such as a pilot and a final instrument, see Survey version history. Basic saving and loading do not require Git commands. With authentication configured, survey.push(description="Feedback survey", visibility="private") uploads the survey and returns its identifier. Choose visibility explicitly and retain the returned identifier for retrieval or updates. Sharing a survey does not automatically share every referenced dataset or grant access to all related material. Use Expected Parrot objects and the CLI Guide for remote operations. See Notebooks for sharing a notebook or script as supporting material.

Preserve a directory of study materials

Study captures files in a directory, including subdirectories. Use it when a study includes scripts, notes, and other files alongside individual EDSL objects:

from edsl import Study

study = Study("study-materials", exclude=[".git/*", "__pycache__/*", "*.tmp"])
study.to_jsonl("study-materials.jsonl")
restored = Study.from_jsonl("study-materials.jsonl")
restored.extract("restored-materials")

This assumes study-materials already exists. The archive contains file contents; it does not execute scripts or install dependencies. exclude uses relative-path glob patterns and no exclusions are automatic. Review the included files before sharing the archive. extract() writes beneath the original directory name (restored-materials/study-materials here) and overwrites existing files with matching paths. study.to_yaml() returns a readable inventory of the captured files.

Introduction

Setup and tutorials

EDSL objects

How-to guides

Research examples

Human research

Execution and costs