Professional InfoPath 2003 [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

next chapter, we’d like you to take a quick look at the InfoPath user interface, with an emphasis on the design mode features. So if you haven’t already done so, why not start InfoPath and take a short tour with us?

Start by opening the form template called Absence Request that comes with InfoPath. To open the form, click the More Forms button on the Fill Out a Form task pane, and choose the form on the Sample Forms tab of the dialog box. The usual path of the form template files is C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\1033\INFFORMS\1033\.

The workspace is divided into two main areas: the form area and the task pane area. The form area appears on the left side of the screen, and the task pane area by default appears on the right, regardless of whether you are designing a form or filling it out. Figure 1-1 shows the Absence Request form with the Help task pane.

Figure 1-1: The InfoPath workspace.

The Form Area

The form area is where you enter your form data. When you fill out a form, the form template’s location is displayed at the bottom left of the form area.

In design mode, a form appears in the same position, but you can access the form controls, set their properties, and define other form options. To switch between fill-out and design modes, you can either choose an option from the drop-down menu at the top of the task pane, click a toolbar button, or choose FileFill Out a Form or Design a Form. Figure 1-2 illustrates the form area in design mode.

Figure 1-2: The form area in design mode.

The Task Pane Area

You can locate the task pane anywhere you like; it can be moved, resized, docked or floated, opened or closed, just like other Office applications. Depending on the context, task panes can contain commands for switching views, formatting options, and inserting form controls. They can also contain, help text, hyperlinks, or clip art.

When you design a form, you can create custom task panes that will be available to your users when they fill out your form. Custom task panes consist of an HTML file and can also contain form-specific content, such as command buttons and data catalogs.

When you design a form, your options include choosing between creating a new form or modifying a sample. New forms can be built from scratch, starting with a blank form and adding controls. If you create a new form from a data source, you have the option to base the form on an XML schema, a database, or a Web service. See Figure 1-3.

Figure 1-3: The task pane in design mode.

Design Tasks

The design mode task pane, shown in Figure 1-4, provides several options, three of which you’ll review here:

qLayout

qControls

qData Source

Figure 1-4: The task pane showing design tasks.

Layout

InfoPath provides for several tabular layout options, with four useful commonly used layouts that can be modified and one for a custom table. When you insert a table layout, InfoPath draws a dotted line around the table cells.

There are commands or task pane buttons to merge and split cells, add and remove columns and rows, and so on. Figure 1-5 shows part of the Layout task pane.

Figure 1-5: The Layout task pane showing table options.

Controls

When you click the Controls button, you can choose from a rich set of form controls (see Figure 1-6). Any control can be dragged onto a form. If you are using a blank form, InfoPath gives the control a default name and creates a related form field to which the control is bound. It also creates an element with that name in the form schema.

Figure 1-6: The controls list.

You’ll learn more about the available controls and how to use them as you read through the book, especially in Chapter 8.

Data Source

When you click the Data Source button, InfoPath displays a hierarchical list of the fields to which the form controls are bound. Fields store the data that you enter into controls. Figure 1-7 shows part of the list from the Absence Request form.

Figure 1-7: The form data source list.

You can set or view the properties of a data source field by right-clicking the field in the data source list and choosing Properties from the context menu. The Properties dialog box is displayed automatically if you have created a form from a schema, and you drag a new control onto the form.

Figure 1-8 illustrates the properties of the XHTML notes element in the Absence Request form. Note that most controls in the dialog box are disabled. This is because the XML schema for the form predetermines the properties, such as name and data type, and you can’t change them unless you modify the schema itself.

Figure 1-8: The form data source list.

Design Mode Icons

InfoPath makes extensive use of icons to give you feedback on objects in the design interface. It is worth spending a few minutes reviewing them, because it will help you understand the relationships between the form objects and the underlying XML document.

Data Source Icons

A field represents an XML element or an element attribute. If a field represents an element, it can contain attributes fields. The data source list also shows groups, which can contain fields and other groups. Groups typically contain controls like repeating tables and sections.

The table shows the three basic icons and their meanings, together with the decorations that are added for repeating, locked, and required properties.

Binding Icons

In design mode you can tell if a form control is correctly bound to an element or attribute in the data source. Icons are displayed in the top right corner of the control if a control is not bound to a field or there is a duplicate binding. If the binding is correct, the icon shows only when you mouse over the control. The following table shows the icons and their meanings.