Guided Procedures Forms Use Types
Overview
Composite forms in Guided Procedures (GP) are a convenient way to implement collaborative processes where:
● Certain tasks are executed offline
● Paper-based processes need to be replaced or facilitated
● Personalized and impersonalized data services are supported
● Information varies in content and size
● Certain tasks need to be available in more than one language
In addition, you can use forms to start processes or to collect data from multiple sources.
According to the use type that you want to implement, you need to create different object types and configurations.
Composite Forms in GP Processes
When creating a composite form object in the GP design time, you can explicitly enable it for use in GP. You can integrate such form as a step in a process modeled in GP. To do that, you must additionally expose the form as a callable object and include it in a process template.
At runtime, the callable object is executed in background mode, and the form in PDF format is sent by e-mail.
You can configure the object so that the form is sent to the step processor. Alternatively, you can use a built-in input parameter for a custom e-mail address that is integrated in any form to send the e-mail to an arbitrary address specified at runtime.
Standalone and Impersonalized Forms
A standalone form can be instantiated and used outside a GP process context. It can be accessed by HTTP, and you can configure it so that a process is started when it is submitted, for example.
Impersonalized forms are a further specialization of standalone forms. They are not associated to a user context, and therefore, a single form can be submitted multiple times. Such forms can be used for conducting surveys, for example.
For standalone forms, you do not need to create a callable object. You can instantiate and access the forms directly in the GP design time. Impersonalized forms are managed using the GP Administration workset.
Print Forms
Optionally, you can configure a GP form as a print form. It can then be used for displaying data and for mass printing.
Dynamic Forms
The GP framework also offers support for dynamic forms. They are designed in a way that allows new data fields to be added dynamically at runtime.
You can use such forms, for example, when you do not know the precise number of records in a table that has to be inserted into a composite form. The required rows are added to the form once the data is retrieved from the database.
For more information, see Designing Dynamic Forms.
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