software/languages for online structured data collection from (human) clients

Question

I need to develop a web interface to collect and validate a range of data from many of my organization's clients.

This isn't a single form, but a collection of forms with interdependencies (i.e., field X on form Y is needed if field A was equal to C on form B), and variable length lists (please provide the details for all Xs in your possession).

I had a look at the marketing on Microsoft InfoPath and Adobe LiveCycle, but I get the impression that they're principally electronic forms solutions rather than data collection tools. (e.g., If a user has entered their address once, they should never have to see it on a form again).

Any suggestions of good tools, applications or domain-specific languages?

Answer 1

Sounds like you're looking for survey software. If you want to follow the principle of "buy, don't build," take a look at http://www.surveymonkey.com. If you want this hosted in-house, then http://www.quask.com/ has a nice product called FormArtist.

Otherwise, you can use any web application technology (ASP.NET, PHP, etc.) to build your own survey application.