"Cooking" with CMS Forms

Get oriented to CMS Forms and Orbeon and learn "recipes" for solutions to various form scenarios.

On this page:

• Why a "cookbook"?
• How this cookbook is organized
  • Starters
  • Entrees
  • Combos
  • Desserts
• Explore your creativity and adjust to taste
• Something missing?

Why a "cookbook"?

Some applications are intentionally designed with a lot of flexibility to support creative work. They give you the power to do almost anything you can imagine. There is so much information to be documented, it's both impractical and not useful to do so. Orbeon Forms is one of these applications.

Users like yourself usually care less about how an application works than they do about how to use it to get a job done. A list of all the tools, components, options and effects doesn't really help you figure out how to combine these to accomplish something. It's very likely you'll miss some key insights and opportunities because there's too much information.

A cookbook is simply a collection of recipes (solutions) that describe how to prepare (configure) and mix ingredients (controls) to create a dish (effect). You can combine dishes (effects) to create a full meal (form).

How this cookbook is organized

Like a regular cookbook or restaurant menu, we've collected the recipes in sections to help you "plan your meal" (build your form).

Starters

This section provides an orientation or refresher to CMS Forms and Orbeon. It covers things like application screens, buttons, and controls. It also includes information on some functions and processes to provide context for making your own decisions around building and maintaining your forms.

• Start with orientation content

Entrees

This section provides guideance and instructions on the most common design and development scenarios you'll consider or encounter on any form. It describes how to set up your form's controls (fields) to do things like require input or perform calculations.

• Learn how to work with controls and functions

Combos

This section provides more-advanced guideance for specific scenarios, usually involving multiple interconnected controls, or multiple applications. Learn how to do things like making testing or updates easier, personalize forms and data, or how to create a form page in CMS Lite.

• Explore advanced functions and specific solutions

Desserts

This section focusses on things that occur after someone submits a form. Look here for instructions and guidance on things like email notifcations, attachments and messages.

• Give your form a satisfying 'finish'

Explore your creativity and adjust to taste

Don't worry. It's nearly impossible to "burn something" or "ruin your meal".

You don't have to follow a "recipe" exactly.

• Try some different options and settings and check the results
• Mix and match "ingredients" to come up with something unique and new
• Start with something basic and add your own flavour to it

Feel free to experiment.

Something missing?

This manual is for YOU.

• Thought of a situation or scenario not included in this cookbook?
• Struggling to get a recipe "just right"?
• Want to share your own recipe?

Submit a ticket to let us know about it. We'll help you out and expand this manual's content.