Following are some general tips to assist you in optimizing your form design:
- Layout Consistency - Users who enter records in multiple categories (forms) will appreciate having a consistent form layout in all categories. If a particular field is used in some but not all categories, it is generally best to make the field invisible in the categories that do not use it, rather than removing it from the form altogether (by setting the order parameter to zero).
The invisible field will appear as an empty cell in the HTML table that structures the form, and all following fields will appear in their customary locations. If the field were removed from the order altogether, all subsequent fields would move up one location. A field that appeared in the left column of a form in one category would then appear in the right column of the form in a different category, making interpretation more difficult for the user.
- Data Consistency - If a common type of data is being collected in multiple categories (e.g. Part Number for Issues), it is desirable to use the same underlying database table field for this data in all categories. The read-only Table Field value described above is analogous to the underlying database table field.
Users may choose to run queries that aggregate records from multiple categories. A column in a query output will come from a particular underlying table field, even if that column has a different caption and usage in different categories. Interpretation of the data will be easier if data consistency is maintained (e.g. Part Number data will always appear in the same column, regardless of what it may actually be called in various categories).
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