Large form set: Deliver in portfolio, or build one big PDF?

[BeckVB]

Greetings, all--

I am using LiveCycle to recreate a set of 24 or so forms that were originally built in Word. My users download the forms, complete them on their desktops, then print and submit the forms in hard copy. Most users are not tech savvy. The forms must be very easy for them to access, open, navigate, and print. Most also function within severe hardware limitations (slow Internet connections, old machines, etc.). On my end, I have a rusty at best command of scripting and am new to LiveCycle. I know what I want my forms to do but am very slow at figuring out how to make those things happen.

I am working first to decide on how to deliver these forms. It looks like I will have to build one big PDF to get the form behavior I want (autopopulation of like fields, field calculation, etc.). Does that sound right? Or is it possible to set up each file as a separate PDF and package them in a portfolio and still get cross-file behavior like auto field population, sequential page numbering, etc.?

Any feedback on setting up big set of files would be much appreciated.

Thank you,

Virginia

[Niall_O_Donovan]

Hi,

For what it is worth...

• First of all consider what version of Acrobat/Reader the user population will have. Improved functionality comes with each new version. So you might end up including features in your form that won't work on the users' PC. In LC Designer 8.2 you are able to define the target version (in File/Form Properties/Defaults) and then check in the Warnings tab to make sure that the form will run OK in that version (eg no warnings);
  
• If people don't have to save the form (or the data that they have typed in) then you don't have to worry about Reader Enabling the form. This gives the ability to users with Reader to save that (Reader Enabled) form. Useful if they are filling in the same form regurarly.
  
• The implementation of Portfolios in version 9 is very good. However if users have older versions of Acrobat/Reader then it will revert to the previous implementation of Packages (less graphical) and users will get warning messages.
  
• Keeping the forms separate will help performance; but may make it more difficult for users to locate the correct form. Creating one large form in LC is possible (and will make it very easy to share values across the 24 forms becuase they will be in the one XFA PDF); however if each form has multiple pages and there is dynamic hide/visible script then performance may be a problem. If the form is static (eg does not grow) then performance will not be as badly affected with the single form approach.
  
• There is a work around to get forms to talk to each other (whether in a portfolio or not), but it requires a good bit of scripting and a cool head.
  

In summary, if you are working with static forms that will not grow (fields not extending to accomodate overflowing text) then I would go with one form.

You can always develop the single form for the time being and then at a later stage break it out into 24 separate forms.

Good luck,

Niall

[Former Community Member]

If you build one big form then I woudl be concerned about performance. You already mentioned that you have a slow network, so keeping the filesize down woudl be paramount. AS far as accessing the forms, do you have a shared location like a web server page or a shared network drive that all users can access?

Paul

[BeckVB]

Thank you, Niall and Paul, for your input.

In answer to your questions, I work for a large state government agency that made a major LiveCycle purchase not long ago but made no investment in training. The forms I'm building are dynamic. My users can only be expected to have Reader (but I can require them to use the most recent version available); rights will be extended so users can stop and save their work. I deliver my forms via the web (users download them from my site), but I have no access to any LiveCycle functionality that comes from the server end.

I think the answer to my delivery question is to go halfway down the middle. Rather than one giant form or 24 small ones, I'm building three "subset" forms. I do not want the coding headaches that would come with trying to give these forms cross-talk capability. Users will have to re-enter some data in each of the three subset forms--oh well. If I make smart divisions, I can still get a lot of the autopopulate and field calc functions I'm really after. I'm experimenting now with Portfolio set-up options to see how I can make it easiest for users to open, navigate, complete, and print the forms. The combination of PDF form and PDF Portfolio functions is going to produce a really elegant delivery system--I'm fairly proud of that.

I'd like to thank you guys again for taking the time to help me. I spend an awful lot of time on this forum, trying to get very basic information about how to use LiveCycle. I appreciate your willingness to think about a question that must seem foundation-level basic to you. To me, the decision of how to present and deliver the forms really is the first step in designing them.

Thank you again, and until later,

Virginia