Toped: enabling end-user programmers to validate data

Abstract

Inputs to spreadsheets and web forms often contain typos or other errors. However, existing tools require end-user programmers (EUPs) to write regular expressions or even scripts to validate data, which is slow and error-prone. We present a new technique enabling EUPs to describe data as a series of constrained parts. We incorporate our technique in a prototype tool called Toped, which generates validation code for Excel and web forms. Our technique enables EUPs to validate data more quickly and accurately than with existing techniques, finding 90% of invalid inputs in a lab study.