The Component manager provides you with a suite of ready to use modules that can be inserted directly into your form.
Some components are based on your plan and plan options. For example, all healthcare components require a minimum of the advanced plan and advanced security must be turned on. You can find these minimum requirements in the last column of the component manager interface. Please note, if the insert option is greyed out, you do not meet the minimum requirements for use. Please contact your doForms representative to discuss your options if you would like to use a specific component that is not available to you.
Component manager also allows you to build and store your own personal components.
You can view components quickly by simply selecting the view option next to each component.
How to find components:
- Open the component manager.
- Search will find components by searching for your keyword in both the Name and Description fields.
- You can sort components by clicking on the appropriate column.
- Components can be sorted by Name, Description, Category and Skill Level.
- Your personal components are identified as My Components in the category column.
- You can preview a component before inserting it into your form.
How to insert components:
- You can insert components into any published or draft form.
- Once you select your component you can view it and then insert it from the view screen, or you can simply click on insert.
- The component will be added immediately after the currently selected question in your form.
- You can delete the instructions and any other component items you do not want but you must do so before publishing your form.
- Component data names might conflict with other data names in your form. You will need to resolve these conflicts by changing the data name of the inserted item.
- Inserts cannot be reversed so it is advised that you save your form prior to inserting a component.
- Inserting a component that has an attached data source will automatically add that data source into your account. All component data sources are stored in a project named Lookups. The system will create this project if it does not exist. The data source form and the sample data will be copied into the Lookups project. If you already had a form in the Lookups project with the dame name that you created the system will add a “comp” extension to the data source name and your data source will not be affected. If you use a component multiple times the data source will not make multiple copies and will use the data source again after the first time the system creates it.
How to make your own components:
- When building components, start by either building a new form or you can add any existing published or draft form as a component.
- When starting with a new form, add the elements of your component and preview to ensure it functions as required. Then either save it as a draft or publish it.
- Open component manager and hit the add button located at the bottom of the screen.
- You will be given a list of all your draft and published forms. Select the form you just saved or the form you want to turn into a component.
- Please be aware that if you delete the form, it will also delete the component.
- If you edit the form, it will in turn modify the component.
- Once a component has been inserted into another form, modifying the component will not modify the form a component was inserted into.
- The system will delete your own component if you delete the form associated with it.