[Comphelp] RE: [Website_improve] Help with Adobe Forms submission on website
Dan Gingras
dgingras@comcast.net
Tue, 16 Mar 2004 19:11:39 -0500
Luis,
Here's what I've figured out today. It is possible and relatively easy to
use SENDMAIL to send a form from a page, you just need the CGI script, which
is available here:
http://www.scriptarchive.com/formmail.html
The rub is that you need access to send mail, which might be a privileged
process on the server and not available to anyone. (this makes sense since
you don't want someone using it to spam. The same would be true using CDONT
in ASP.
But there's an alternative. You can use an external service to mail the
form. The one I found costs $12/yr for 100 e-mails a month. Here is that
one
http://www.formmail.com/
I'm sure there may be others. It looks pretty simple and they even have a
free version where you can try it for a week. I may do that to test it out.
That's what I've learned today. I'll kill this thread if no one is
interested otherwise I'll let you know what else I find out.
Dan
P/C Dan Gingras SN
www.amoskeag.org
-----Original Message-----
From: Luis Lopez [mailto:lopezlf@yahoo.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 16, 2004 6:30 PM
To: Dan Gingras; LNSPS@att.net; kkempson@twcny.rr.com
Cc: website_help@usps.org; comphelp@usps.org
Subject: RE: [Website_improve] Help with Adobe Forms submission on website
All,
I had a similar problem about six months ago where I
wanted to create a form so that our members could
update our roster online. The solutions and examples
that came back all involved client side mailto. This
has proven to less that an ideal solution. Many of
our members do not have their email setup correctly or
are using multiple mail accounts and the wrong one is
the default. Since then I have tried to discourage
the use of online forms on our website. Unfortunately
there are many things that we could use forms for on
our website. These include roster updates, class
registration, monthly meeting reservations, and
volunteer forms for the boat shows and other events
that we are involved with.
I think that many of us have a need for some sort of
server based form processing system and that many more
would use one if it was available. I know nothing
about server side scripts but do have an extensive
background programming in C, Java, and other popular
languages. I would be willing to work on any code
needed for this type of system if anybody out there
can point me in the right direction. Also I guess
that USPS HQ would have to tell us if we would be
allowed to run any such scripts on their servers.
If anybody has any ideas feel free to reply on this
list or contact me directly at lopezlf@yahoo.com.
Thanks,
Luis Lopez
Raleigh Sail and Power Squadron
--- Dan Gingras <dgingras@comcast.net> wrote:
> Adobe uses a SEND TO URL construct, which can be
> used to send to MAILTO URL
> (client side, obviously). I suspect it could also
> be used to send it to a
> formhandler or directly to sendmail as an
> attachment.
>
> USPS HQ uses something like this to submit the
> course order form which does
> not use a client side mailto tag. I know how to
> code it in ASP using a
> CDONT object, but I don't know how to use the ADOBE
> program to send it to a
> background form handler, or directly to sendmail on
> the server side.
>
> I'd prefer NOT to use a client mailto tag if I can
> avoid it. I always
> prefer server side forms handling. Unfortunately
> all my web development has
> been Microsoft centric, so I don't know javascript
> or any other server side
> technology. Time to learn I guess, just looking
> for what hams would call
> an "elmer" to help me along.
>
> Dan
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: H H Jett [mailto:LNSPS@att.net]
> Sent: Tuesday, March 16, 2004 3:51 PM
> To: kkempson@twcny.rr.com; Dan Gingras
> Cc: website_help@usps.org; comphelp@usps.org
> Subject: RE: [Website_improve] Help with Adobe Forms
> submission on website
>
> Does the Adobe created form use "client-side" mailto
> action or is
> it a "server-side" form?
> We have a Course Registration form (client-side
> mailto) on our
> website but users with webmail, AOL and browsers not
> linked to
> their e-mail clients have difficulties with this.
>
> Harriman
> Lake Norman
>
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: website_help-admin@usps.org
> >[mailto:website_help-admin@usps.org]On
> >Behalf Of kkempson@twcny.rr.com
> >Sent: Tuesday, March 16, 2004 1:11 PM
> >To: Dan Gingras
> >Cc: website_help@usps.org; comphelp@usps.org
> >Subject: Re: [Website_improve] Help with Adobe
> Forms
> >submission on
> >website
> >
> >
> >If you have Acrobat, (not just the reader version)
> you
> >can make forms with fill in fields.
> >They have a send mail "preprogrammed" button.
> >
> >If wanted, you can go crazy with programming the
> fields.
> >Calculations, copy from another field.
> >It is all there in the "forms" section of Adobe
> Acorbat
> >
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: Dan Gingras <dgingras@comcast.net>
> >Date: Tuesday, March 16, 2004 1:02 pm
> >Subject: [Website_improve] Help with Adobe Forms
> >submission on website
> >
> >> I don't know if this is the right forum, but all
> my questions
> >> seem to be
> >> answered here lately, so let me try.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> When ordering supplies from the Education
> department you
> >> actually fill
> >> out a PDF form online. Does anyone know what
> program
> >is used to
> >> create the
> >> form? Then, how is it submitted. Might it be
> >possible to get a
> >> copy of the
> >> submission code? I think it's just sendmail,
> but
> >I'd like to
> >> incorporatefillable forms on our squadron site.
> >Unfortunately I
> >> only code ASP, which
> >> is not used on the national server, but I'm
> willing to
> >learn a new
> >> method.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> The ability to register for courses on our
> website would be
> >> very cool, as
> >> would several other similar functions.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Anyone willing to coach me would be sincerely
> appreciated.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Thanks
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> P/C Dan Gingras
> >>
> >> Amoskeag PS
> >>
> >> www.amoskeag.org <http://www.amoskeag.org/>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >Website_Help mailing list
> >Website_Help@usps.org
> >http://www.usps.org/mailman/listinfo/website_help
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Website_Help mailing list
> Website_Help@usps.org
> http://www.usps.org/mailman/listinfo/website_help
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Mail - More reliable, more storage, less spam
http://mail.yahoo.com