using a general browser as a form-based capture method
in [JavaScript]
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From: CaptainKirk1966 on 16 Nov 2009 07:02 On Nov 15, 5:36 pm, Terence <tbwri...(a)cantv.net> wrote: > On Nov 14, 1:17 pm, Terence <tbwri...(a)cantv.net> wrote: > > > I was rather hoping somebody can contribute to this question. > > The browser must have the form data content in memory, plus the labels > > and probably even a buffer with the proposed POST action text block. > > All I wan to do is store this buffer (in Modzilla coded format) on a > > local disk drive. > > I have been requested to post more detail. > > I am aware that for personal security reasons, browsers do not > normally write to disc without going through an approved download > process. But what if the browser is working OFFLINE? What happens to > the form data? Are there then the same restrictions in force? > > I have computers that are never connected to any network, yet I use > them for form generation and even web-site code testing via any (a > few, precisely for testing) browsers. > > It has been suggested that the problem can (theoretically) be resolved > by using something like TinyWeb on the same computer, so that the form > posts to "localhost" and the web-server on the same computer (each and > every one needed, else one local network server) then creates the > usual dummy message and attaches the Modzilla coding of data contents > (ALL browsers that process code seem to support the format) and sends > the dummy message to the local web server. > > Then the web server takes the message and attached needed file and > puts it in a local mailbox, which is also on the same computer.. > "Modzilla coding" The term you seek is most likely url encoded. I forgot to ask what happens when the user receives the encoded form data by email ? I presume he/she copies and pastes the encoded string into another program for processing ?
From: Dr J R Stockton on 16 Nov 2009 11:31 In comp.lang.javascript message <8e487b16-2e23-44c4-b337-db06f74cb510(a)g1 g2000pra.googlegroups.com>, Sun, 15 Nov 2009 14:36:03, Terence <tbwright(a)cantv.net> posted: > >I am aware that for personal security reasons, browsers do not >normally write to disc without going through an approved download >process. AIUI, if you make an HTA page, using MSIE, you can combine Web-style appearance with WSH-style access to the machine. And you can distribute it by the Web mechanism, with instructions to save to local disc. I have not tried it. -- (c) John Stockton, Surrey, UK. ?@merlyn.demon.co.uk Turnpike v6.05 MIME. Web <URL:http://www.merlyn.demon.co.uk/> - FAQish topics, acronyms, & links. Proper <= 4-line sig. separator as above, a line exactly "-- " (SonOfRFC1036) Do not Mail News to me. Before a reply, quote with ">" or "> " (SonOfRFC1036)
From: Terence on 16 Nov 2009 16:42 Oh dear! Thomas Lahn has criticised, not "my" code" but the acumulation of code offered by others after many concecutive insertions and fixes. NONE of it is "my" code"! All shown except that below was in posting responses. Of course it doesn't match, and is a mis-mush and of incorrect syntax. I'm not all that interested in correcting the code of others, I'm just interested in find out what java code is necessary to take the pure HTM form data ( the entity "this.form" for example) and store the user-input data on the local disc in Modzilla format. A REAL HTM form generated by our system is totally correct and woks fine to send data needlessly back-and-forth over the internet to get the form Modzill data back. And, I point out, if your browser is working offline and you fill in an htm form, that captured form data isn't going anywhere if the action method is POST. But it COULD be stored if there is a method of doing so. Which is what I'm looking for. A typical source file in HTM for our purposes would be about 40k to 100k; each form output would be about 2-4k of data per person. Here is the smallest example of an expected RESULT file I could lay my lands on. It shows the capture of binary radio and multiple button choices, decimal values and text responses. This one happens to contain spanish responses. Greek wouldn't show up very well here. But the concept is to be able to use one solution to work on ANY htm form, almost whatever the language set used, although we limit to left- to-right single byte symbols. id=CUEST2++&01%2F03-00=+1&01%2F04-01=+1&01%2F04-02=+2&01%2F04-03= +3&01%2F04-04=+4&01%2F04-05=+5&01%2F05-00=+1&01%2F06-01=+1&01%2F06-02= +2&01%2F06-03=+3&01%2F06-05=+5&01%2F07-01=+1&01%2F07-03=+3&01%2F08-00= +1&01%2F09-01=+1&01%2F09-02=+2&01%2F10-00=+2&01%2F11-RR= +1.+Cumplimiento+de+acuerdos+ANS+%28actualizaci%F3n%2C+calidad+de+la +data%2C+tiempo+de+respuesta%29%0D%0A+2.+Gesti%F3n+y+atenci%F3n+de+los +Ejecutivos+de+Cuenta%0D%0A+3.+Proactividad+en+Proyectos+ %A0&01%2F16-00=+2&01%2F17-00=+2&01%2F18-00=+3&01%2F19-00=+5&01%2F20-00= +5&01%2F21-00=+3&01%2F22-00=+3&01%2F23-00=+4&01%2F24-00=+3&01%2F25-00= +3&01%2F27-00=+4&01%2F28-00=+4&01%2F29-00=+5&01%2F30-00=+3&01%2F31-00= +4&01%2F32-00=+5&01%2F33-00=+5&01%2F34-00=+4&01%2F35-00=+5&01%2F36-00= +4&01%2F37-00=+5&01%2F38-00=+4&01%2F39-02=+2&01%2F40-09=+9&01%2F41-03= +3&01%2F42-02=+2&01%2F43-00=+1&01%2F44-00=+6&01%2F45-05=+5&01%2F46-02= +2&01%2F47-RR=+%A0Banco+de+Venezuela&01%2F49-RR=+%A0VPA+Riesgos+de +Particulares&01%2F51-RR=+%A0VPE+Riesgos&01%2F53-00=+4&01%2F54-00=+1. The question, again, is, "how do I change the following htm code by the use of java script, to replace the line <form method="post" name="STUDY999" action="mailto:tbwri...(a)cantv.net"> with something that changes the action from e-mailing to one of storing?" Obviously the final line referring to the Internate and the button "submit" would become an action of "STORE" and an early extra input field would have captured the person ID to create a file name variable for storing the data. <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd"> <html> <head><title>STUDY999</title></head> <form method="post" name="STUDY999" action="mailto:tbwri...(a)cantv.net"> <input type="hidden" name="id" value="STUDY999"> <table width=100% border=0 bgcolor="#C0C0FF"><tr><td> <font color="#000000" size="+1"> [any form] </font></td></tr></table> <hr><table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0><tr><td><font color="#000000" size= +1> Connect to the Internet for normal e-mailing, then click on <br> "Submit"; after which you can disconnect if you wish.</td></tr> <tr><td align="center"> <input type="submit" value="Submit"> </td></tr></table></form></body> </html>
From: Terence on 16 Nov 2009 16:58 On Nov 16, 1:32 pm, "CaptainKirk1...(a)gmail.com" <captainkirk1...(a)gmail.com> wrote: > On Nov 15, 5:36 pm, Terence <tbwri...(a)cantv.net> wrote: > (removed) > This is highly confusing. You are talking about a web server listening > on localhost, receiving an html form posted from a browser on the same > machine, and then e-mailing the form data back to a user on the same > local machine ? YES. Without solving local storage, this is how it has to work; else a LOCAL webserver for the same purpose. That was the suggesting of a private respose suggesting the use of a local webserver to acheive the same objective. As I said "sledgehammer". > > Why would you want the server to e-mail the encoded form data back to > a user on the same , rather than act on it directly and send the > result back to the browser ? Note: the "user" is one person doing data entry (from a paper near- identical form) on a form ALSO used on the internet. The same person may use different forms on the same day. One single processing system has to process all forms of similar input the same way. There is NO cgi-based validation necessary. The data from the forms is self- identifying from the first form-name field. Right now, to do data input repeatedly with a single particular form, each workstation sends the data to the internet as a mailto: message attachment (POST) and the data comes right back to the same location as file of Modzilla coding (which format is needed). It is totally sufficient in these cases fo the HTM form logic to collect acceptable data. Any between-questions logical inconsistences are resolved (after automatic detection and attention drawing) by inspection of the paper document during a detect-and-correct process that is very rarely needed.
From: Terence on 16 Nov 2009 17:09
On Nov 16, 11:02 pm, "CaptainKirk1...(a)gmail.com" <captainkirk1...(a)gmail.com> wrote: > "Modzilla coding" The term you seek is most likely url encoded. I > forgot to ask what happens when the user receives the encoded form > data by email ? I presume he/she copies and pastes the encoded string > into another program for processing ? The Modzilla coding is automatically parsed, the data extracted and compared with generated expected limit values and internal logic, field labels supplied, a data set entry for that surveyed person is inserted in the data base. Any text reponses are parsed via the appropriate language tool and multiply coded as furthe data. The data base is logically analysed and cross-checked: any individual discrepencies detectd and correction called for by instection of the original paper document. Then automatic processing by programs under the control of control files themselves generated from the the original questionnaire form analyse the entire data base and write complex statistical reports with confidence levels in RTF format (and other) for presentations. |