|
AUTOFORM AND FORM BUTTON TOOL DISTINCTION
The NetObjects Fusion Tools Palette provides tools for drawing two types of form buttons. The Form Button Tool (secondary tools) accessible after clicking on the Form Tool is not the same as the AutoForm Tool. The standard Form Button Tool is used to associate your own script with your form. To use the standard Form Button Tool, you either need to create your own CGI script or obtain one from another source. AutoForm automatically uses a script supplied with NetObjects Fusion called Forms-Handler.cgi. You should never try to configure Forms-Handler.cgi manually with the standard Form Button tool. In NetObjects Fusion 2.0, Forms-Handler.cgi is used by AutoForm; it is actually a part of the AutoForm component.
DESIGNING YOUR FORM
To use the AutoForm component, click on the NetObjects Components Tool (the letters NFX appear on this tool) and then on the AutoForm secondary tool. Use this tool to draw your form's submit button on the page. Use the standard form tools (accessible in the secondary tool area after clicking on the Form Tool) for all your other form elements. You use the standard form tools to draw all data-containing form elements, like single-line edit fields, check boxes, etc.
ASSIGNING PROPERTY VALUES
After drawing an AutoForm submit button, a list of component properties will appear in the NetObjects Fusion Property Palette. If the Property Palette is not visible, click on the View menu then the Property Palette menu item. Correct values need to be supplied for the AutoForm properties as displayed in the AutoForm component property list. These properties are described in the Property Settings section of this document. The AutoForm component property list in the Property Palette appears only when the AutoForm submit button is selected.
NUMBERING FORM ELEMENTS
Other than assigning property values for the AutoForm component, the only other procedure required is to number your form elements. Do so by clicking on a form element, say a single-line edit field, and enter a number in the Name field in the property palette. Do this for all data-containing form elements; this includes all form elements except submit and reset buttons. Form elements (with the exception of radio buttons) must be numbered sequentially. For example, your first form element would be given a Name of 1, the second one a Name of 2, and so forth. It does not matter the order you number your form elements. Just make sure they are all numbered from 1 on up to your last data-containing form element.
Also, be sure not to append any characters to the end of the numbers in the Name fields. For example, 1-Name or 2-Password are not valid form element names when using AutoForm.
An exception regarding sequential numbering applies to radio buttons. Radio buttons work in groups. Say you have three radio buttons that operate together; only one can be selected at a time. These three radio buttons would have the same Group Name. When numbering form elements, treat a group of radio buttons as a single form element. Supposing you had two form elements numbered 1 and 2 and a group of radio buttons, each radio button in the group would have a Group Name of 3.
Note that what is displayed in the Property Palette is context sensitive; what appears in the Property Palette depends on the type of element that is currently selected on the page. When you select an AutoForm submit button, a list of component properties appears in the Property Palette. When you click on another form element, an element tab (as in file tab) will appear.
Do not place quotes around the Names (or Group Names) of your form elements. And do not use the Settings button (in the Property Palette) for your form when using AutoForm.
For each properly numbered data-containing form element, a "Required field #" property will appear in the Property Palette when you click on the AutoForm button. If you have two properly numbered single-line edit fields in your form, two "Required field #" entries will appear in the Property Palette after clicking on the AutoForm submit button. The "Required field #" property can be set to True or False indicating whether or not the site visitor must fill in the respective field.
|
