Create some support for InfoPath

[Bernie Quick]

You guys push InfoPath, but provide next to zero support, in the product as
far as useful, I mean useful, not fluff, functionality.

InfoPath cannot even support the simpliest idea of passing an URL parameter
to the form, from a link on a Sharepoint site. If you even put a ? after the
..xsn extension, infopath can't open the form. HOW can the possibly mess up
opening the form. THis is the web... the ? is valid character in the URL...

How can you sit in your little Microsoft world, and not even think that
someone would want to pass ... or maybe... a record ID to the infopath form,
so it could open on the right record.

It's amazing the amount of ranting on the web about this problem... oh and
some post rediculous work arounds that make the "time saving" in using
InfoPath negated, because of all the extra work around you have to do.

I've even used Support for InfoPath issues, and the guy didn't even know
what a task pane was...

In your dropdown list of knowledge base articles you don't even have info
path as a selection to search under.

I'm just frustrated beyond belief...

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http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...214-5713621384da&dg=microsoft.public.infopath

 

[Michael]

Hi Bernie,
Did you find a good work around for the URL parameter + infopath?
Im diving into the same issue, but my infopath form is not saved in
sharpoint. The data is saved in a database. what i did is to refer the url to
a webapplication which
open the form and populate the id field with the parameter and then populate
the form based on the data received from a webservice method call..

Michael

 

[Bernie Quick]

This was so long ago...

I basically did a database solution....

I created a SQL Table, called UserLastAction. In this table, I insert a
record via a web part when a user wants to open the infopath form, I insert
their ActiveDirectory UserName and a datetime stamp.

After that, I redirect to the infopath form. The first task of the infopath
form, is to read the record from the UserLastAction table, and retieve the
most recent record for them, with the pararmeters.

I then use those parameters in my InfoPath form.

Since that project we have determined that InfoPath is not well suited for
anything more complex than a simple form... it saves no time in
development...and Microsoft is not really supporting it anyway...

Good Luck!