Creating a form

The following procedure demonstrates how to create a form. This example is for a Time Off Request form that employees can use to request their manager’s approval for time off from work. You can create forms as needed for your business environment by modifying this procedure as appropriate. For example, you can replicate your existing paper-based forms.

To create a Time Off Request form:

1. In Microsoft Office InfoPath, click New to create a blank form, and then click InfoPath Form 2007 filler. Do not create a form from within InfoPath if you intend to use the form in a solution.

   New InfoPath forms that are intended to work independent from Workflow Solutions must be created by using InfoPath Form 2007 filler.

2. Place the cursor in the blank InfoPath form and type Time Off Request.
3. Select the text, set the font size to 14, and click Bold.
4. Below the Time Off Request header, type Form ID:
5. In the Controls area, click Controls.
6. From the Standard area, click Text Box.

   A text box appears on your form just to the right of the Form ID label.

7. Right-click on the new text box and from the pop-up menu, click Text Box Properties.

   The Text Box Properties dialog box appears.

   

8. In the Field Name text box type formId.
9. Click OK.
10. Using the same instructions as in steps 4-9, add the following controls to your form in the order shown:

    Control Name	Control Type	Field Name	Additional Settings
    Requestor	Text Box	requestor	None
    Current Date	Date Picker	currentDate	None
    Start Date	Date Picker	startDate	None
    Return Date	Date Picker	returnDate	None
    Number of Days Off	Text Box	totalDaysOff	Select Whole Number (integer) as the Data Type
    Notes	Text Box	notes	In the Display tab, enable Paragraph Breaks and Wrap Text In the Size tab, set the Height to 50 and the Width to 250

11. Place the cursor at the bottom of the form.
12. In the Custom area of the Controls pane, click ShareVis.ProcessControl.

    The ShareVis.ProcessControl custom control facilitates the flow of data between your form and its associated workflow. See Using Winshuttle Designer for instructions for creating a workflow.
    
    NOTE: Do not copy and paste custom controls in InfoPath.

    As it relates to Winshuttle Designer, a Workflow is a graphical representation of the flow of information (documents and/or forms) through an enterprise.

    Your Time Off Request form should now look like this:

    

13. Save the form in your local file system with the filename TimeOffRequest.xsn.

    NOTE: The InfoPath filename cannot contain hyphens. It is best to use letters and numbers only.
    
    NOTE: The form you created is called View 1 by default. It is the default view of your form data and will be used in any associated workflow unless you specify a different form view. For information about creating and specifying different views of your form data, see "Working with Form Views" later in this section.

    As it relates to Winshuttle Designer, a Workflow is a graphical representation of the flow of information (documents and/or forms) through an enterprise.

14. Close InfoPath.

    NOTE: Your form is now saved on your local file system, but it is not saved on your Form Workflow site until you publish it. Continue to the next section for instructions for publishing your form.