# Difference between dynamic selects with pre-loaded data and external selects **URL:** \ **Category:** Support\ **Tags:** odk-xlsform\ **Created:** [February 8, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://forum.getodk.org/t/difference-between-dynamic-selects-with-pre-loaded-data-and-external-selects/17752 "2019-02-08T14:25:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nina\_Brooks](https://getodk.b-cdn.net/user_avatar/forum.getodk.org/nina_brooks/32/2538_2.png) [@Nina\_Brooks](https://forum.getodk.org/u/Nina_Brooks)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://forum.getodk.org/t/difference-between-dynamic-selects-with-pre-loaded-data-and-external-selects/17752/1 "2019-02-08T14:25:40Z")
**What is the problem? Please be detailed.** I am conducting a follow-up survey and am confused about the best way to load previously collected data about the respondents and whether using pre-loaded data or external selects is more appropriate. I need to be able to do a cascading select where surveyors first select a union, then a village (within that union), then a bari (within that village). Then I would like a list of households that we previously surveyed in that bari to appear so that you can select the household you are at, and then I would like a list of individuals in that household that we previously surveyed to appear so that you can select the individual you are about to survey. Based on the individual selected, I would like to pre-load some information, such as their name and age. I also need all of this to work in multiple languages. Is this a combination of external selects and pre-loading data? What is the best way to achieve this sort of structure? **What ODK tool and version are you using? And on what device and operating system version?** I am using ODK Collect v1.18.1 on a Samsung Galaxy Tab E and building my form with XLSForm. ---
**Author:** ![dicksonsamwel](https://getodk.b-cdn.net/user_avatar/forum.getodk.org/dicksonsamwel/32/2898_2.png) [@dicksonsamwel](https://forum.getodk.org/u/dicksonsamwel)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2019, 9:32am UTC](https://forum.getodk.org/t/difference-between-dynamic-selects-with-pre-loaded-data-and-external-selects/17752/2 "2019-02-09T09:32:04Z")
Hi @Nina_Brooks, You may understand the difference by actually implementing them and see how each works. Depending on the complexity of the form, it may require you to use a combination of both. Also check out this thread, it may help you. > [@Hide select one external on repeat](https://forum.getodk.org/t/hide-select-one-external-on-repeat/11999): > > What is the problem? Please be detailed. I have a select one based on an external csv. For example. when you enter a room number "T0001", It looks through the csv and pullout a list of T0001/1, T0001/2 and T0001/3 which are also select one. I want when the user select T0001/1 and answer the question under that and next it repeats the list T0001/1, T0001/2 and T0001/3. When the repeat happens it should hide T0001/1 since it has already been answered. What ODK tool and version are you using? And… ---
**Author:** ![yanokwa](https://getodk.b-cdn.net/user_avatar/forum.getodk.org/yanokwa/32/1695_2.png) [@yanokwa](https://forum.getodk.org/u/yanokwa)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2019, 4:54am UTC](https://forum.getodk.org/t/difference-between-dynamic-selects-with-pre-loaded-data-and-external-selects/17752/3 "2019-02-11T04:54:42Z")
You will likely have to do both because they aren't really related. All selects can cascade (union-village-bari). If you have a very large list of selects (100s), external selects are more performant. To pull up data about the household, say in a CSV, you'll need to use preloads.