Saving HTML Form without Submit

[catherine.bajis@lmco.com]

I have a small project to create some simple HTML forms. Rather than
have our users go to our web page and 'SUBMIT' the form data, it would
be easier for them to fill out a simple standalone form, save it as an
HTML page and send the page as an attachment in an email for uploading
by the recipient. How feasible is this? and what HTML tags would make
it possible?

[Jim Moe]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

catherine.bajis @lmco.com wrote:[color=blue]
> I have a small project to create some simple HTML forms. Rather than
> have our users go to our web page and 'SUBMIT' the form data, it would
> be easier for them to fill out a simple standalone form, save it as an
> HTML page and send the page as an attachment in an email for uploading
> by the recipient.
>[/color]
I'm mystified. It's harder to
- Open a browser
- Go to form
- Fill in form
- Submit it

than to
- Open a custom program
- Fill in the form
- Save it
- Open a mail client
- Attach the form (Damn! Where did I save it?)
- Address it (Damn! Where's that address?)
- Send it
?
Does the custom program need to work on multiple Operating Systems?
What about when you must update the custom program?
What about when you must change the form?
What about when you must change the mail address?

--
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(Remove .AXSPAMGN for email)

[Lachlan Hunt]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

catherine.bajis @lmco.com wrote:[color=blue]
> I have a small project to create some simple HTML forms. Rather than
> have our users go to our web page and 'SUBMIT' the form data, it would
> be easier for them to fill out a simple standalone form, save it as an
> HTML page and send the page as an attachment in an email for uploading
> by the recipient.[/color]

I think you meant it would be easier to implement on the back end with
that method, not easier for the user. Go learn a little bit about PHP,
Perl, or other server side processing language and do it properly. If
you go searching, you may even be able to find some pre-written scripts
to do what you need. You could also try asking in a server side
processing related newsgroup.

--
Lachlan Hunt

http://lachy.id.au/

http://GetFirefox.com/ Rediscover the Web
http://GetThunderbird.com/ Reclaim your Inbox

[catherine.bajis@lmco.com]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

The people sending this form are frequently on travel where it is not
easy (i.e. fast) to sign on to any server. Sometimes it is NOT possible
at all. Saving a standalone form, sending the email w/ the form
attached and having someone at the office submit it to a DB REALLY is a
better way to go for us.

[catherine.bajis@lmco.com]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

The people sending this form are frequently on travel where it is not
easy (i.e. fast) to sign on to any server. Sometimes it is NOT possible
at all. Saving a standalone form, sending the email w/ the form
attached and having someone at the office submit it to a DB REALLY is a
better way to go for us.
The form only needs to work with our operating system. And updating the
custom program or changing the form is not a problem because we have so
few changes.

[Dr John Stockton]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

JRS: In article <1134087786.777 078.5850@g47g20 00cwa.googlegro ups.com>,
dated Thu, 8 Dec 2005 16:23:06 local, seen in news:comp.infos ystems.www.
authoring.html, catherine.bajis @lmco.com posted :[color=blue]
>I have a small project to create some simple HTML forms. Rather than
>have our users go to our web page and 'SUBMIT' the form data, it would
>be easier for them to fill out a simple standalone form, save it as an
>HTML page and send the page as an attachment in an email for uploading
>by the recipient. How feasible is this? and what HTML tags would make
>it possible?[/color]

To achieve what you seem to want, you could alternatively make the
SUBMIT button (perhaps not formally SUBMIT) collect and validate the
entries and write the lot to a textarea in compact but readable form; so
that the user can copy'n'paste the textarea into an E-mail.

The validation would be subvertible; but I assume that it is in the
interests of your users to co-operate with the system.

--
© John Stockton, Surrey, UK. ?@merlyn.demon. co.uk Turnpike v4.00 IE 4 ©
<URL:http://www.jibbering.c om/faq/> JL/RC: FAQ of news:comp.lang. javascript
<URL:http://www.merlyn.demo n.co.uk/js-index.htm> jscr maths, dates, sources.
<URL:http://www.merlyn.demo n.co.uk/> TP/BP/Delphi/jscr/&c, FAQ items, links.

[Jim Moe]

Re: Saving HTML Form without Submit

catherine.bajis @lmco.com wrote:[color=blue]
> The people sending this form are frequently on travel where it is not
> easy (i.e. fast) to sign on to any server. Sometimes it is NOT possible
> at all. Saving a standalone form, sending the email w/ the form
> attached and having someone at the office submit it to a DB REALLY is a
> better way to go for us.
>[/color]
Make it a locally accessible HTML document rather than a custom program
that creates a HTML page. The back end then need only know how to attach a
file for mailing. Ordinary CGI stuff.

--
jmm (hyphen) list (at) sohnen-moe (dot) com
(Remove .AXSPAMGN for email)