***3 Golden Rules***
1) Test before going live.
Never break this rule, you will be glad you spent the extra time.iFormBuilder is a very powerful and flexible platform. As such, there are sometimes more than one way to accomplish the same thing. Once you put your forms together, please run a few end-to-end tests before going live.2) Data Column Names must be unique to the page they belong to and database friendly. Cannot begin with a number, no spaces and no special characters.
3) DO NOT change Input Type, Data Size, or Encryption for an element on a live form. You will erase all of the data captured for this input in doing so. If you must change an input type, please consider disabling the old element and adding a new one to take it's place moving forward.
Best Practice
Have a look at the video below to get started using iFormBuilder today!
Building Forms using FormBuilder The FormBuilder application provides an intuitive yet powerful interface for building robust forms for your iOS devices. FormBuilder can be used on any computer or device with Internet access and a Flash-capable web browser. FormBuilder access is granted only to users that have the ability to create forms. This is discussed more in detail in the form assignment section.
![]() Once an existing form has been loaded or a new form has been created, you can start adding and editing widgets. The FormBuilder application screen is composed of 2 sections, the Device View (left) and Element Properties (right).
Form PropertiesPressing the Edit button in the title bar of the Device View can access the Page Properties window.
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*NOTE (Form Icon): For best results, use a 64X64 pixel PNG image with transparency.
Device View
Element Properties
Common Properties
![]() Data Column Name Details:
![]() Input PropertiesThe Input Properties tab controls the type of input, and some additional properties that can be applied as well. Chose the proper input type to match your needs, such as text, date, photo, time, or even barcodes to name a few. Selecting a new input type from the drop-down list updates the display to reflect how this input will look on the mobile device. To check out other types of data inputs CLICK HERE.
*Not every widget supports the properties listed below, and only supported properties will be show based in widget type.
Option List PropertiesIn the Option List Manager, users can set up lists of options to populate Select, Pick-List, Multi-Select, and Email widgets. To create a list, highlight a supported widget and click on the Option List Manager button. Option lists are reusable allowing you to apply the same option list to several different elements. Creating your own option list is easy. Follow the steps below to create an option list!
***Note: If you have 2 forms using the same option list, editing one option list in one form will affect the other. Ex. If you copy a form, they will share option lists. If you change the copied form option list values, it will change the original as well.***
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![]() Now that you have created the custom list, you still need to assign it to your element.
Highlight the list that you want to apply to the element and click the Assign list to element button. You can also delete any lists that you like by highlighting the list from the menu and clicking the "-" button.
![]() If you wish to edit the option list content simply click on the title of that list and that list will open for editing. The options can be rearranged as well using drag and drop. Be sure to hit Save list in order for any changes you've made to take affect.
The Advanced tab permits the user to embed conditional logic into the list (Smart Option Lists), and change the "key_value" of the options within the list. Options can also be resorted by dragging and dropping them to a new location.
![]() Icons URL is used to define the location of the graphical assets for Image Option Lists. When defining your directory point to the folder of the URL where the images live. Ensure you do not have a '/' at the end of your URL or you will no longer be pointing to the image directory.
![]() Smart Paging PropertiesSmart Paging only applies to sub-form elements. This feature allows users to select any form they have created to be used as a sub-form. Using sub-forms can increase application speed for projects that require a lot of conditional logic, or contain a lot of questions. Rather than place all of your form elements in one long form it is beneficial to chunk information into sub-forms.
![]() By selecting the Separate Table View box collected sub-form records will be viewed differently depending on the Link Mode and Separate Table View box selections as shown below:
Smart Control PropertiesDynamic Value - Use JavaScript statements (strict, or conditional) to set the value of the element.
Conditional Value - When the statement evaluates as true the element will display on the device, otherwise it will remain hidden.
Dynamic Label - Use JavaScript statements to specify the label of an element. Click Here to learn how to utilize Dynamic Label.
Client Validation - Use custom validation logic to restrict a record from uploading unless certain values are entered.
Validation Message - This message will display to the end user in a pop-up window if the client validation fails.
Smart Table Search PropertiesSmart Table Search allows you to perform a local search on any data table. Ideally, the data column that you perform a search on should contain a unique value. In the case where the data that you perform the search on is not unique, one of the records will be returned. The Smart Table Search takes two parameters, Table Name and Column Name (data column name). A good example of a unique value is a phone number or social security number.
![]() Reference IDIn the Reference ID tab you can specify properties of an individual element. CLICK HERE to see the Reference IDs available for Elements. ![]() InfoIn the Info tab, database and version information for the selected input is available.
Element ID - Identification Number of the element in the form.
Element Index - Number of the element on the form. Used with DISPLAYFIELD Reference ID.
Belongs to the page - The ID number of the Form you are currently working with.
![]() Auto-SaveBeneath the Element Properties panel is the application save bar.
By Default Auto-Save is disabled. With Auto-Save enabled, the application will save all changes automatically after three seconds of inactivity.
![]() The Save button becomes enabled when there are changes to save to the database. When it is disabled, all changes have been saved and no saving is necessary.
The Load button returns the user to the Load Page window to load another page for editing, or create a new page.
Reference Materials (Attachments)
You can link reference files within your form so that you never have to leave the application to view an external document. PDF documents that are hosted on the web will be stored locally on the device for offline viewing. You will need an active connection (wifi, or cellular) to view active web pages. To have PDFs save locally refer to the Attachment Widget Documentation To link these reference materials to element, enter a valid URL in the attachment link field, found under the element "Input Properties" in Form Builder. Once the URL has been entered and the form has been saved, the device will need to be synced before the reference materials can be viewed by users entering data. When the form is opened on the device you will see a blue arrow on the element that has an attachment link. Users can click on the blue arrow to go directly to the reference materials, or tap on the element and then click on the paper-clip icon to view the attachment. To return back to the form just tap the button in the top left hand corner of the device that will show the element name the link is attached to. |
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