ETA files

EyeTrackerAnalyzer uses a native format of files for analysis, called .ETA files. These .ETA files are a wrapper around .mat files, and contain one or multiple raw eye-tracking data (from .EDF or .mat format), and can additionally contain one or more pre-processed datasets.

Rational

Working with native .ETA files, instead directly with .EDF files, has several advantages:

• A single .ETA file can aggregate several .EDF files, allowing to aggregate of multiple recordings belonging to the same participant into a single file
• The EyeTrackerAnalyzer saves the pre-processed data alongside the raw eye-tracking data, removing the need to perform time-consuming steps when reanalyzing the same file
  • When a file is loaded, the toolbox will first check if there is already a pre-processed dataset that matches the inserted triggers and segmentation parameters and load it accordingly
  • If no previous segmentation is found, a new analysis will be performed and saved unto the same .ETA file
  • A single .ETA file can save multiple pre-processed data sets, each indexed according to the parameter set used
• Any manual changes done during visual inspection can likewise be saved unto the analyzed .ETA file and loaded in future reanalysis, assisting in reproducing results

Conversion

It is possible to convert raw eye-tracking data from .EDF or .mat format to .ETA format using one of two GUI panes:

• Multiple Data Files Per Subject Packaging Pane
• Single Data File Per Subject Packaging Pane

The .ETA file can be converted to .mat format through:

• Extract Eye Data As .MAT Pane