Adding form elements - mission impossible or opportunity!?

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itexnz
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Adding form elements - mission impossible or opportunity!?

Unread post by itexnz »

OK, interesting question from a prospective client that is looking to get smart with singe-source documentation for producing dozens or hundreds of checklist forms filled in by engineers in the field...

The ability for H+M to generate PDFs with form fields would be amazing, I'd be able to implement a H+M single source infrastructure (much as I have with many other organisations) but the PDFs that are generated could be opened and filled in, saved and sent (or directly submitted) to the organisation for processing.

For an example of the types of field options, see something like the ability to create fillable PDF forms online here https://www.pdfescape.com/account/unregistered/

or

https://www.jotform.com/pdf-editor?fillable=new


Failing the PDF creation option, I wonder if any demos/examples are available with inserting HTML code into pages for webhelp outputs with form fields and submit buttons that could do the same sort of thing.

I'm keen to be able to give them options using my Help+Manual weapon of choice - rather than seeing them going down a long, expensive, tedious process of inflexible custom app/database design which will end up not being maintainable in a single source way leading to forms and documentation getting out of date quickly.

A mission impossible, or a massive opportunity?!
David Scott
Documentation Infrastructure Consultant
https://www.sourceone.co.nz
SourceOne. Documentation, engineered.
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Martin Wynne
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Re: Adding form elements - mission impossible or opportunity

Unread post by Martin Wynne »

itexnz wrote:I wonder if any demos/examples are available with inserting HTML code into pages for webhelp outputs with form fields and submit buttons that could do the same sort of thing.
Hi David,

see: https://helpman.it-authoring.com/viewto ... 758#p63758

cheers,

Martin.
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itexnz
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Re: Adding form elements - mission impossible or opportunity

Unread post by itexnz »

Nice start thanks Martin. It'll be interesting to see if I can find a way of including snippets, conditional elements etc., within the form functionality.

Looks like I have some mad professor things to try in my down time...
David Scott
Documentation Infrastructure Consultant
https://www.sourceone.co.nz
SourceOne. Documentation, engineered.
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Martin Wynne
Posts: 2656
Joined: Mon May 12, 2003 3:21 pm
Location: West of the Severn, UK

Re: Adding form elements - mission impossible or opportunity

Unread post by Martin Wynne »

itexnz wrote:It'll be interesting to see if I can find a way of including snippets, conditional elements etc., within the form functionality.
Hi David,

Yes, you can jump in and out of multiple HTML Code Objects.

cheers,

Martin.
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