Requires 133MHz Pentium III Or Higher CPU& Windows 2000 Or Later Operating System
Added 31 Jul 2008
Design InfoPath Forms
1. Where to start. You can either design a form from scratch or open an existing form. To design a form from scratch, click New Blank Form under Design A Form on the Task Pane. If you want to open an existing form, you can open the form in Design Mode or from a Sharepoint site on a Web server.
2. Get help. The first thing to be aware of when using InfoPath is the Help feature at the upper-right corner of the main window. Instead of choosing Help on the main menu, try using the Type A Question For Help field as a shortcut. Be aware, however, that the information is stored on Microsoft.com, so you'll need an Internet connection. When typing a query, be sure to be specific, as you usually get more than you bargain for when the results come back.
3. Get a sneak peek. Microsoft probably knew that designers would not be able to resist seeing what their forms looked like before the form was actually completed. It doesn't matter if you're designing a new form or filling in an existing one; there is always an option to preview the form before it is finished. Simply click the Preview Form button on the standard toolbar, and when you're finished gawking, click the Close Preview button in the same place.
4. Make it clickable. You can add hyperlinks to your forms if you need to access data that is located in a different area on your form or somewhere else on the Web. To insert a hyperlink that will point to a URL (uniform resource locator), click the Hyperlink button on the standard toolbar and enter the URL you want to link to. If you want to insert a hyperlink that will point to a Data Source in the form itself, click Data Source and browse to the field or group you want to link to.
5. Paint the town red. It would be awfully bland if every form were designed in black and white because every form would look much the same. You can change the color properties of your tables and cells by manually applying border and shading changes. It's easiest to change the properties in design view. Simply right-click the small properties square on the upper-left corner of the control or layout element you have inserted and paint your town red.
6. Clone your forms. When you design a form, your history is recorded in a Data Source tree. If you want to make an exact copy of a specific field or group that you have already created, click and drag the element from the Working With The Data Source list, which is located under Data Source in the Task Pane. This will save you time and unnecessary repetition by forcing you to re-create an element you've already built.
7. Inserting pictures. You can insert pictures from a clip art library or a file on the local computer. To do so, just click Insert on the main menu and then click Picture. If, however, you want to let other users insert their own pictures while filling out a form, you can insert a Picture Control to be included in the actual form or as a link to another group or field in the form. Just follow the instructions above, then click Control.
1. Where to start. You can either design a form from scratch or open an existing form. To design a form from scratch, click New Blank Form under Design A Form on the Task Pane. If you want to open an existing form, you can open the form in Design Mode or from a Sharepoint site on a Web server.
2. Get help. The first thing to be aware of when using InfoPath is the Help feature at the upper-right corner of the main window. Instead of choosing Help on the main menu, try using the Type A Question For Help field as a shortcut. Be aware, however, that the information is stored on Microsoft.com, so you'll need an Internet connection. When typing a query, be sure to be specific, as you usually get more than you bargain for when the results come back.
3. Get a sneak peek. Microsoft probably knew that designers would not be able to resist seeing what their forms looked like before the form was actually completed. It doesn't matter if you're designing a new form or filling in an existing one; there is always an option to preview the form before it is finished. Simply click the Preview Form button on the standard toolbar, and when you're finished gawking, click the Close Preview button in the same place.
4. Make it clickable. You can add hyperlinks to your forms if you need to access data that is located in a different area on your form or somewhere else on the Web. To insert a hyperlink that will point to a URL (uniform resource locator), click the Hyperlink button on the standard toolbar and enter the URL you want to link to. If you want to insert a hyperlink that will point to a Data Source in the form itself, click Data Source and browse to the field or group you want to link to.
5. Paint the town red. It would be awfully bland if every form were designed in black and white because every form would look much the same. You can change the color properties of your tables and cells by manually applying border and shading changes. It's easiest to change the properties in design view. Simply right-click the small properties square on the upper-left corner of the control or layout element you have inserted and paint your town red.
6. Clone your forms. When you design a form, your history is recorded in a Data Source tree. If you want to make an exact copy of a specific field or group that you have already created, click and drag the element from the Working With The Data Source list, which is located under Data Source in the Task Pane. This will save you time and unnecessary repetition by forcing you to re-create an element you've already built.
7. Inserting pictures. You can insert pictures from a clip art library or a file on the local computer. To do so, just click Insert on the main menu and then click Picture. If, however, you want to let other users insert their own pictures while filling out a form, you can insert a Picture Control to be included in the actual form or as a link to another group or field in the form. Just follow the instructions above, then click Control.