Developing Solutions with Microsoft® InfoPath™

Developing Solutions with Microsoft® InfoPath™
Published:October 27, 2004Accompanying Media:N/A
Author:Matthew Blain, Patrick Halstead, and Vani Mandava-TeredesaiLanguage:English
Length:408 PagesLevel:N/A
ISBN 13:

9780735621169Technology:

Microsoft Office XP
ISBN 10:0-7356-2116-0Format:N/A
List Price:$ 49.99
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About The BookGet expert guidance and best practices for building end-to-end business solutions with InfoPath.

Build innovative, XML-based solutions faster—with expert guidance from three veterans of the Microsoft InfoPath design team. Discover how to use common InfoPath design patterns to accelerate the development of forms with a dynamic, easy-to-use front end that connects seamlessly with middle-tier services and back-end servers, including databases, Web services, and Microsoft BizTalk Server. The authors walk you through a range of programming scenarios—explaining the pros and cons of various approaches and sharing their best practices and undocumented tips. You’ll also find real-world examples, including a complete, three-tier business solution.

Discover how to:

  • Customize and deploy your own InfoPath forms, taking advantage of ready-made sample code


  • Create “smart” InfoPath forms to provide a dynamic experience using conditional visibility, data validation, and autopopulation


  • Design a rich form interface with structured and dynamic sections, multiple views, and calculations


  • Build forms-based workflow processing into InfoPath forms using e-mail, SharePoint servers, and BizTalk


  • Use the Microsoft .NET common language runtime-based object model to increase development flexibility


  • Receive and submit data for your forms using back-end databases and Web services
    •
    Welcome to the companion content for Developing Solutions with Microsoft InfoPath. Here you can download the code samples used in the book.
    Code SamplesDownload the Code Samples (6.38MB)
    System Requirements

    The programming prerequisites for the book include:

    Windows Components

    •   Windows XP Professional or Windows Server 2003
    You can use InfoPath on Windows 2000 with Service Pack 3, but you need Windows XP Professional or Windows Server 2003 to develop solutions for it.

    •   InfoPath
    Office Professional Enterprise Edition 2003 includes InfoPath. You can also buy InfoPath 2003 by itself. Once you have InfoPath. be sure to update it to SP1. SP1 contains numerous feature enhancements for InfoPath and, more important, this book assumes that you have SP1.

    •   Office 2003 Service Pack 1
    Microsoft released the Office 2003 Service Pack 1 (SP1) on July 28, 2004, and this book assumes that you have it. If you haven't updated to SP1, visit the Microsoft Office Web site for more information: http://office.microsoft.com/. You do not need the entire Office suite to install the Service Pack; the Service Pack will automatically update InfoPath and other Office components you have installed.

    •   Outlook
    The e-mail workflow examples in Chapter 2 and Chapter 9 require Outlook 2003. InfoPath uses Outlook to send forms via e-mail.

    •   Excel
    The Export To Excel feature described in Chapter 2 and Chapter 9 require Excel 2003.

    •   Visual Studio .NET
    The book includes programming samples created with Visual Studio .NET 2003. You can also use the stand-alone Visual Basic.NET 2003 or Visual C#.NET 2003 to create InfoPath templates with the .NET Framework. You will also need the .NET Framework 1.1. Form users need to have the .NET Framework installed for solutions which use .NET assemblies, but they do not need to install Visual Studio.

    •   InfoPath 2003 Toolkit for Visual Studio .NET
    This is a plug-in that works with Visual Studio .NET to help you create and manage InfoPath 2003 projects. You can download the tools from the following URL: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=7E9EBC57-E115-4CAC-9986-A712E22879BB&displaylang=en.

    •   Internet Information Services (IIS)
    The Web services in Chapter 7 requre IIS.

    Other Server Software

    InfoPath is an ideal enterprise business client. Enterprise business processes include middle-tier services and back-end servers. To get the most out of this book, you need access to servers running the following software.

    •   SQL Server
    Chapter 6 assumes that you have access to an installation of Microsoft SQL Server.

    •   Windows SharePoint Services
    InfoPath is designed to work well with SharePoint. Many chapters in this book include examples that involve SharePoint form libraries. Chapter 9 focuses on SharePoint integration.

    •   BizTalk 2004
    Chapter 11 requires an installation of BizTalk 2004.
    Installing The Code SamplesTo use the sample code, click the download link to run the setup. In order for the sample files to be installed properly, the setup requires IIS on your system.
    Uninstalling The Code SamplesTo remove the code samples from your computer, make the appropriate selection from Add Or Remove Programs in the Control Panel.
    Support InformationEvery effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the book and the companion content. As corrections or changes are collected, they will be added to a Microsoft Knowledge Base article. You can find Knowledge Base articles and other support options at the following location: Microsoft Press Book and CD Support Web Site.
    About Matthew Blain, Patrick Halstead, and Vani Mandava-TeredesaiPatrick Halstead founded Autonomy Systems LLC, to help companies streamline data-handling costs and improve data analysis using Microsoft Office-based solutions. A former Microsoft developer, Patrick led solutions development for the first version of InfoPath. He is a 2004 Microsoft MVP for Microsoft Office System–InfoPath.

    Vani Mandava-Teredesai is Lead Software Design Engineer for Testing on the InfoPath product team and has worked on InfoPath since its inception. Prior to joining Microsoft, she worked at the Center of Excellence for Document Analysis and Recognition, a research center at State University of New York–Buffalo.

    Matthew Blain is Director of Software Development for Serriform, LLC, a firm that designs and delivers enterprise-class software solutions. Previously, Matthew worked at Microsoft as a developer for Internet Explorer and on the team which later developed InfoPath.
    Have Questions? For advice about training and certification, connect with peers: For questions about a specific certification, chat with a Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP): To find out about recommended blogs, Web sites, and upcoming Live Meetings on popular topics, visit our community site:
    What do you think of this book?Your feedback is important in helping us create books that serve your needs and meet your expectations. Please take our survey at www.microsoft.com/learning/booksurvey

    Note: You will need this book's 13-digit International Standard Book Number (ISBN) to take the survey. The ISBN 13 can be found above.
    To report or search for corrections in this book or companion content,
    please go to www.microsoft.com/learning/support/books/
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