Hi there,
I know this has been posted over and over but I still need a solution. I'm javascripting a pretty complicated form for a customer (complicated to fill out for their customers that is) with the aim to make things out easier.
Now there are additional Form fields that are only to appear when really needed so to not confuse any people who don't need them. There's not enough space on the page to have them so I need a second page. But I can't just have an empty page attached to put the elements on and we don't want the elements just to be there. The form is difficult enough without such awkward workarounds.
The documentation said Reader only needed "form rights" to be able to spawn templates so I feel seriously deceived about this feature. Even worse prior to Reader 7 I could just have hidden and shown the template according to the docu. What kind of user-hostile product management is this?
Anyway I need a solution. It would be ok to have the customers fill out the additional form fields in an overlay, but the form is to be printed in every single case, so where can I put things?
Any help and ideas greatly appreciated, this has been very frustrating.
Cheers,
Tina
new page in Reader
2011-10-01 21:58:47
My Product Information:
Acrobat Pro 10.0, Macintosh
Acrobat Pro 10.0, Macintosh
2011-10-02 02:04:53
#2
I would heed Max's advice, but would also consider the following approach:
Create another page with the additional fields.
You can add to its PageOpen action a script that checks whether it should be displayed, and if not, redirects the user to the first page.
When you determine that the user should fill the extra fields, make them visible and inform the user using an alert.
Create another page with the additional fields.
You can add to its PageOpen action a script that checks whether it should be displayed, and if not, redirects the user to the first page.
When you determine that the user should fill the extra fields, make them visible and inform the user using an alert.
2011-10-02 09:26:41
#3
I just wanted to clarify something. The JavaScript documentation is lacking when it specifies that "forms rights" are required for template spawning to work. What's specifically required is the "create pages from templates" usage right, which is different from the "basic form fill-in" usage right. Unfortunately, this specific usage right is not mentioned in the JavaScript documentation, which contributes to this confusion about what's required for template spawning to work with Reader.
I also think it's quite unreasonable that XFA forms are allowed to dynamically create new pages in Reader without any special usage rights, but template spawning is normally disallowed with Reader. (But Reader not being able to select files for images/graphics for button icons is even worse!)
I also think it's quite unreasonable that XFA forms are allowed to dynamically create new pages in Reader without any special usage rights, but template spawning is normally disallowed with Reader. (But Reader not being able to select files for images/graphics for button icons is even worse!)
In order to use Templates with Reader, you will need Forms Rights, applied by Reader Extensions Server (or whatever the name du jour of that product is); Acrobat Pro's Reader enabling is not sufficient. So, if you have access to a Reader Extension Server, you are fine.
On the other hand, there are some other considerations: If the form is so difficult to fill out, and so complex, it looks to me as if too much had tried to be crammed onto one single page. Think about easing it, and give it two pages by default. That could already give relief for your extra fields, as well as make the form look less complex.
You might also rethink the form, and have another look at its workflow, in order to make it less of a hassle to be filled out. This is, of course no longer mechanical forms making; this is a serious forms analyzing and form management task.
Hope this can help.
Max Wyss.