Forms that are Smart
I love keeping things electronic. From paying my bills to making my grocery list, the more I can do without paper the better (and the more likely I am to find it!).
In my perfect world, I would also make all forms electronic. I love the convenience of opening a form on my computer, typing all my answers, and submitting it back to the intended recipient. For me, it’s so much easier than trying my best to make my handwriting legible, and then having to scan and email, fax, or mail the form to submit it. There are simply fewer steps and I like that.
I even like the name used to describe these forms. A “SmartForm.” How clever – a form that does some thinking for you. SmartForms often include fillable text boxes, drop-down menus, and checkboxes. They can also be pre-populated with data from your database and can even change information in a drop-down depending on the information put into the form. When a form is submitted, it can be electronically routed through a workflow process based on the information completed in the form as well as inserted into a database or management system. Isn’t that smart?
There are different ways to create a SmartForm. One of the most common ways, and one I have found to be very user-friendly, is Adobe Acrobat. When you combine Adobe Acrobat X and Adobe LiveCycle Designer, pretty much anyone can create a standard form. Their Form Wizard makes it easy to add fillable fields, drop-down menus, and check-boxes. If you’re more tech-savvy, you can use Java Script to apply business rules and automation to the form. Here are some other possibilities of a SmartForm:
- Fillable textboxes, drop-down menus, checkboxes, etc.
- Pre-population of data before the form is displayed.
- Computations within the form.
- Built-in alerts to ensure accurate data.
- Digital signatures.
- Automatic routing to specific groups or individuals.
- Built-in workflows based on form data.
- Secure Storage as searchable PDFs.
- Simple exporting of data for analysis and reporting.
If SmartForms were implemented in medical clinics, HR departments, and educational institutions, I think I’d be pretty close to my perfect world. How would they impact your world?
Vanessa Benkert, Electronic Form Lover
