How to Make Forms With Computer Software

Create forms that can be distributed to people to gather discrete data. The method of doing this is straightforward, but it needs planning and a set of three software packages, which are probably available in most commercial or educational organizations but would have to be purchased for home use. Start to design your forms in a standard word processor and then dress them up to give a professional look and feel. Choose which areas feed data into a database. Finally, protect the document security attributes, so that it cannot be amended by anyone.

The Process of Creating the Design Through Finishing the Fields

• 1
  Creating the initial design should be planned ahead. Manos en teclado 20509 image by pablo from Fotolia.com

  Design a form in Microsoft Word using text and graphics. Although you will not need to create actual entry fields, create plenty of space between lines that ask for data, and between paragraphs that contain text blocks since space will become scarce later on. Use a plan for data-gathering forms. If they need to cover several pages, place the personal information, such as name, address and contact information, on the first page. Follow this with more information gathering fields on the next page. Finally, place a signature block, if needed, at the end on the last page.

• 2
  Create a Portable Document File (PDF). working on computer image by dana nicolescu from Fotolia.com

  Once the initial document has been created in MS Word, the next stage is to create an Adobe Acrobat file (PDF) by printing to the Adobe PDF printer. Once the Adobe Acrobat format has been created it can be used to generate fields and gather the user's data into a database.

• 3
  Get the layout right. website layout image by 6922Designer from Fotolia.com

  Open the file in Adobe Acrobat and check the layout. Close it in Adobe Acrobat and open it in Adobe Illustrator and edit the text and field captions there. Once Illustrator changes have been finished, save the file. This can be a continuous process. Open the file in Acrobat. Visually check and then go back to Illustrator to make changes. Return to Acrobat for field editing.

• 4

  Next, edit the fields. For fields that have radio buttons and are mutually exclusive, use the same field name. Digital signatures use a special format and other fields can have different free-form formats entered, such as text, numbers and integers. You will need to open the Forms pull-down from the top menu and select "Start Form Wizard." Select the current document and accept all defaults. Choose "Add New Field" at the top left. Drag the field outline and click to accept. Name it something memorable. As soon as a new field is chosen, a new dialog box appears. In form editing mode, the field can be right-clicked and the properties can be changed.

• 5
  Securing the form. security fence image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com

  If everything has gone well, you will have produced a PDF form that can be filled by anyone.

  Save it in Acrobat and use the second top menu layer under "Secure," "Show Security Properties," "Security Method" and choose a password under "Restrict Editing...," which is the simplest way of securing a document. The highest resolution printing will not compromise the document and allowing form filling will permit data entry without changing the form. Before closing this area, make sure that the security tab has been set to Acrobat 7 or less, to ensure that the maximum number of people will be able to open the form.