I have not yet had a chance to work with LiveCycle, and I have been given a project which I need to determine if LiveCycle would be the correct solution. The client originally wanted this to be a Microsoft Word form, but I doubt that I can meet the requirements using Word.
I need to design a form which a user can enter multiple line items either manually, or by importing existing data. The data itself would be about 40-50 distinct pieces of data, in a block of several sections and multiple lines (i.e Name, Address block, Phone/fax/email, contact and comment section, etc) and would be a combination of text fields and checkboxes. There would be 2-3 of these blocks per page (with a static header/footer), plus a cover page with data fields for the organization using the form.
I know that I could create this type of dynamic form in LiveCycle to be entered manually, but I don’t know what options, if any, I would have in giving the user the ability to import existing data from an unknown source (could be a text file, a local or hosted database, excel, etc.).
My questions are about the feasibility of LiveCycle for this project:
Can data be imported from a data source the user chooses? Are there any limitations to what kinds of data sources can be used? Would I need to program a custom function to allow the user to match the proper fields for the import, or is there a built in function to handle this?
Would there be any platform/application limitations? Can the form be used with Reader on a desktop computer (Mac or PC), or on a tablet (and if so, is a specific app necessary instead of the default app)?
Are there any other foreseeable issues I may have to deal with?