Is InfoPath the right choice?

Question

Ok so we have an upcoming development that will involve a level of off line processing of dynamic forms. Here's what we have to do:

• Create a asp.net web application whereby users can download dynamic forms, fill them in then upload them to be published.
• We also have a windows mobile application that will do something similar.
• The forms will requires images to be selected for uploading when publishing.
• Upon publishing the completed form certain server side validation needs to occur which may trigger additional work to be done i.e. send out emails or update a database etc.

From what I know of InfoPoint (which is next to nothing) it seems like it may be a nice fit. I know its quite highly tied to SharePoint (which again I know nothing about), but can it be used without a SharePoint instance?

Either way, I am just firstly looking for validation that InfoPath is a good fit for what I describe. If it is the I am also after some good online resources.

Thanks in advance, Chris.

Answer 1

I don't think that there is an InfoPath client for mobile devices. What you would want to do is use Forms Server (comes with SharePoint 2007 Enterprise edition) to render InfoPath forms as aspx to the mobile device.

Everything else you describe could be done with straight ASP.NET and the InfoPath client. The mobile piece sounds like it will require SharePoint (for rendering the InfoPath forms as aspx).

Answer 2

See this blog post on using Infopath forms on mobile devices: http://blogs.technet.com/vik/archive/2008/02/25/filling-out-infopath-forms-on-windows-mobile-devices.aspx

Also the Formotus solution may work for you: http://www.formotus.com/

Answer 3

Before delving into whether or not InfoPath (+ SharePoint) is the right solution, what's the reason for not using ASP.NET with which I assume you are familiar? While InfoPath + SharePoint is sexy and hot right now, the learning curve is very high.

Back to InfoPath, I don't believe InfoPath supports uploading files. At least not out of the box. So if having your users upload images is a requirement, I'll say infoPath is out. Apart from that, InfoPath, with the addition of SharePoint Forms Services and workflow, can be used to accomplish what you want. I just wonder what the cost would be versus using straight up ASP.NET.