Hey there!
This evening I submitted an updated version of Tap Forms to Apple for approval.
The new features are:
★ Added Link to Form field type (one-to-many relationship)
★ You can now add new values to a pick list when selecting an existing value
★ Bug fixes
The new updated Lite version also includes an In-App purchase function where you can upgrade to the full version without having to backup your database in the Lite verion and restore it to the full version.
Hopefully it won't take Apple very long to approve it. They've been very good about their review times lately.
So what does "relational" mean?
Basically it just means that you can have a field in a form that links to the records in another form. For example, if you were keeping a catalogue of your movie library, you might have a form called "My Movies". Within that form you might have a field called "Actors". The Actors field links to a form called "Actors". When you select the Actors field when viewing a record for a particular movie, you'll see a list of actors. If there are no actors associated with the movie, you can tap the + button to add one just as if you were adding a record to any form. The next time you view the Actors field for your record, you'll see the list of actors that you've associated with that movie. I hope that makes sense to you.
Another example might be the ability for a teacher to keep track of all their students, their students classes, and the marks the students have received for each of their classes, all accessible from the top-level form.
Another term for a one-to-many relationship is a master-detail relationship. Except in this case you can have master-detail-detail-detail, etc.
Thanks!
Brendan
I use Tapforms all the time. Do you plan on an iPad version?
Hello Glenn,
Yes, I have just started on an iPad port. There’s still lots of work to be done.
Thanks,
Brendan
Brendan – thanks again for a great product. I do have a question about the ‘relational’ addition. Does this work for linking existing form records? Seems to only be for new record additions only…is that the case? Thanks.
Can you please tell me if Tapforms has a way of automatically calculating field values? Eg. Field1 = 10.56. Field2 = 100. Field3 = Field1 * Field2.
Hello Russ,
I have not implemented a calculation field type yet. Sorry.
Brendan
Hello Scott,
The one-to-many relational field type is for new records only. You can import a CSV file into a linked form and link them that way. But you have to do it from within the list of records on the linked form that you navigated to from the field that was linked.
Thanks,
Brendan
Hello Brendan,
first I wanna say that these App is exactly the what I have looked for.
I looked forward to the latests Update, because of the one-to-many functionality.
After the download I started to change my data base to use the master-detail relationship.
My problem is that I have a master-detail-detail relationship. If I open the second detail the tool hangs up. If I go directly to the second form notice shows a number of entries but nothing inside.
What can I do?
Thanks for your answer.
Hello Sven,
How do you have your fields organized on your detail forms? I submitted 1.9.6 to correct an issue with the link-to-form function about a few hours after 1.9.5 was approved. Unfortunately for some odd reason Apple has not approved my 1.9.6 update yet. I think they may reject it for some reason. Not sure.
Try to make sure a Text field type is the first row on your detail forms. See if that makes a difference.
Thanks,
Brendan
Thank you for that tip.
Since I have changed the first field in a text box it works.
Is it possible in the future to have a different format (eg date) for the first box?
That would be class, because I want to have a kind of diary.
Thanks for the good work,
Sven
Hello Sven,
Oh yes, in 1.9.6 this is fixed. I’m just waiting for Apple’s approval for my update which I’ve already submitted.
Thanks,
Brendan
Hello Sven,
Apple approved Tap Forms 1.9.6 tonight which fixes that problem you had with the Link to Form field type.
Thanks!
Brendan
Brendan,
Yes, I too am a TapForms fan. Being able to add entries to an existing Picklist makes that feature significantly better. (Eventually, I’d like to see the next release have the contents of the picklist displayed on the same ‘entry’ screen (underneath) for faster entry.)
I don’t understand the significance of the ‘one-to-many’ component yet. Examples?
Questions/ideas for you:
I made this form in TapForms and uploaded it to Google Docs, where I can add & upload/dload easily. Any plans to make that built into app? Then could add sharing and BANG — DB exchange online via TapForms. $$$
Anyway, I call this form “Script-Scenes”, b/c I’m working on a project for ScriptFrenzy.org (start, write, & finish a screenplay in April 2010), and I occasionally get ideas for scenes & need to write notes — fast.
Name INT/EXT Location Day/Night Action Script Name
This simple TapForm uses ONE PickList w/”INT, EXT, DAY, NIGHT” and ONE PickList with my Script Names.
Last request/comment — I would like to share forms w/people — any ideas on the best way to do this? Are you currently pursuing that? You could post a ‘TapForm csv archive’ where you have forms but no data somewhere, or maybe even build it into your app?
User created content — that is king.
TapForms enables iPhone people to track the info they want
— but why re-create the wheel every time?
Let’s share the paydata!!
PEACE!
rekzkarz.com
Hello rekzkarz.com,
I have thought about a community service for form sharing, but it would require me to manage a server full-time and that’s not something I’m able to do right now. Perhaps the Google Docs thing would be a way to accomplish that.
Or perhaps just a web page with links to forms you can download. If the URL has tapforms in the beginning, then it should launch Tap Forms and import the file. Except that I haven’t written the part that would import the file yet :-)
Thanks,
Brendan
Question regarding one-to-many relationship.
I have two forms that are related.
Form A is called “referrals” and it is a list of patients referred to me by other physicians.
Form B is called “referring physicians” and this is a list of the physicians that refer to me and their contact info.
I have a link within Form A to Form B so I can enter a referring physician from within a new referral.
However, if a physician has sent me more than one patient, I have to re-enter all of his/her information again and it shows up twice in my referring physician form. I can’t choose a physician that’s already in the Form B. This is really a one-one relationship unless I can choose one physician for multiple patients on form A.
Please advise if I’m not using this function correctly.
Sorry, never mind. I see the discussion of this on the forum.
Will await many-to-many implementation.
Hello,
I have tested a free version of Tap Forms and found it very simple and elegant.
However, for my application which I mainly use it for my photo shooting location log, I would like to have the following features.
1: Group the list view by date ( I don’t know why I can’t pick this).
2: More info in the list view (Displaying only two values for each record is too few.)
3: Auto generating certain field values when creating a new record (ie serial number for each record etc..)
4: Calculation field (This maybe too much but would be nice).
I see your app’s main focus is simplicity and ease of use.
However, I feel that the current list view is way too simple or elementary for browsing a bit detailed data.
I assume you would like to keep your app’s simple look but it maybe a good idea to have an option to display extended list view as well (or “Pro” version maybe?).
Then, it would be useful for my application and I would be more than happy to pay for your app.
Hello Panashiba,
1. This is easier said than done because there are several options for grouping by date. By day, by month, by year? Or maybe by hour of the day in the case of a time or date/time field?
2. Aside from usability, I also need to consider performance issues related to the list view. I can display up to 3 fields on the list view. If you move a Photo or a check mark field to the top of the list, it will be displayed to the left of the next two fields in the form. Perhaps that will help you out a bit.
3. This has been asked before. I will get to it eventually.
4. This is also a very frequently asked for feature which is high on my to-do list.
I am currently working on the iPad version, so adding new features will have to wait for a while.
Thanks,
Brendan
Hi Brendan
I can see myself getting hooked very quickly.
I also use the app 1 password that has the handy feature of entering usernames and passwords into the relevant form fields on the web. The value of this is that I can easily log on to my banking website and make transactions without the need to enter account numbers and passwords.
Is this something that can be added easily so I can use one app for all and delete 1password?
Thanks Brendan.
Peter
Hi Peter,
I use 1Password too and I think it’s a great program.
I have thought about adding something like this, but I wasn’t really wanting to compete with those guys since they make such a great product.
But at the moment I’m working on the iPad version, so there’s no time to work on new features until I’m done that. Perhaps I may be able to enhance that area at some point in the future.
Thanks,
Brendan
Just wanted to tell you how I am using Tap Forms. It may give you some ideas for the future. Also, I haven’t purchased the full app yet but I am for sure.
I am a police officer and have been looking for an app to assist with keeping field notes instead of taking out the old pen a paper. I created a few forms in Tap Forms and linked them together. My main form I called Offense Report, which has the case file number, date/time, address, and all the information about the call itself. It links for the Victim form, Suspect form, and Witness form. In each of those attached forms, I enter their personal info that I need to type my report. I also linked each of those to a Vehicle form. In each form, I can interview each individual and have an audio recording of the interview so that I can play it back when completing my report. I have a more accurate statements in my report when quoting what someone tells me.
There are few other features that I put into it that I may have forgotten but you get the idea that I am a big fan. I have been showing other officers and they are buying the app also. I just haven’t been able to beam a form yet. Can’t figure that part out.
Hello Forrest,
Wow, that’s a pretty cool use for Tap Forms! I’m happy that it’s able to help you with your job!
To beam a form, you would first put the other iPhone into receive mode. Do this by tapping on the “iPhone -> iPhone” icon on the Forms tab (at the top left). Then on your iPhone, go to view an individual record, then tap the action menu button (the little arrow at the top-right). Then tap “Beam Record”. You should see the name of the other iPhone appear in the list. Tap the name of the other iPhone and your form and record will be beamed. You can beam just the form by tapping “Form Only” at the bottom of the Beam Record screen.
Hope that helps!
Brendan
I need to input numbers with a preceeding plus (+) sign.
ie +1.00
I want to do this from the number entry section.
Thanks
As per Larrys post, Id also like to see the ability to add prefix and suffix characters to all fields…
$, Celcius, -, +, ect.
Hi Brendan,
I am currently working on the development of an App for the iPad that will help keep track of customer information. I have not purchased Tap Forms, however, if it has the features I am looking for, I will for sure!!
I need to customize a fillable form for each customer for them to fill out their contact info such as name/date/address/ as well as answer multiple choice questions. I would then like to extract this data into a database so I can keep track of it and run some analysis on it.
My questions to you are:
1) Is there a multiple choice option – such as radio buttons?
2) Is there a way to export the data from Tap Forms to an online database?
Please let me know if any of this sounds confusing and your quick reply is greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Dina
Hello Dina,
Well, Tap Forms can do a lot of what you need. But it doesn’t have the multiple-choice selection field type yet. And, although you can certainly export your records using a CSV format, there’s no direct connection to any particular database. You could setup a system on your back-end to accept a CSV file via an email attachment and then process it into your database though. It would take some server side development on your part though.
What online database were you thinking of integrating with?
Thanks,
Brendan
Excellent and practical app for my small business customer accounts. Thanks for a quality app, they can be hard to find.
You’re very welcome! I’m happy you’re enjoying Tap Forms!
Brendan
I too find TapForms a cool, simple, and elegant app to create simple forms. I’ll be experimenting with the relational aspect later and may find a lot of answers in the forum. But am interested in learning your recommendations on a windows 7 compatible database backend. I have MS Access 2007 but am thinking of getting Filemaker Pro in hopes of massaging and more easily displaying Tap Forms data on iPad as well as reports generation on the PC later. For now tho, to get my toe in the water . What .cvs database program will help me link Picts, gps coordinates, audio notes and urls to other fields and display and hear these data types on other PC’s? Have you got a recommendation for a simple easy to use database program to use with TapForm records? I’m running in 2x on the iPad but wonder how functionally different your IPad version is going to be? Can we Continue to expect iPhone TapForms to continue to all work the iPad version?
Regards
JimS
Hi JimS,
Well, any database app that can import & export CSV files will work fine. The only trouble will be with the photos and audio notes as they cannot be transferred via a CSV text file.
The iPad version will have all the same features as the iPhone version. The workflow and the design will be different in areas and the same in others. It won’t be just a blown up version of Tap Forms for iPhone. It will be a proper iPad application.
I’m sorry it’s taking me so long to finish it. It turns out that the iPad workflow causes a lot of different ways that things get displayed. It’s built off the same code base as the iPhone version, except there are a whole bunch of conditional statements to deal with the differences between the two architectures.
Thanks!
Brendan
Brendan,
Thanks for writing me back / responding. Just saw the response right now (when I googled myself). Oooops!
Looks like you now have a DROPBOX import/export setup that allows people to upload files to the site. I also understand you don’t want to manage a server, as a person that does manage servers & it’s a hassle.
I think all you need is a link in your app that lets people save forms to a DropBox ‘public’ folder that you could set up. This folders is 2gigs *for free*, so it seems like a relative no-brainer, no?
It would be a value add for your app.
Remember — user-created content is king on the ‘net.
(BTW, Not sure why I can’t upload/dload my stuff to a subfolder in my Dropbox account, but maybe that’ll be something I can do in the future?)
Thanks again, I’m still a huge fan of TapForms.
Another idea for you: a ‘form builder’ that makes a screen where users can quickly input all their fields. I know it’s a different UI concept, but it’s a common feature in many DB apps.
rekzkarz.com
Just read your blog & seems that you have addressed the issue of DropBox upload/dload to root folder issue. Guess we are on the same page! :)
I don’t have a hype-pad (I mean an iPad) & don’t plant to get one, but I hope you get a huge benefit for making that version. Frankly, the iPhone version means that your app on a phone can really help people who need to stay on top of so many things.
Your app is better IMO than all those list apps & so on, too.
Perhaps another tactic for you at some point would be to make an Android port & some other versions? Your app is so good it should go beyond single platform, IMO. Maybe get DropBox to integrate your code into a webapp that can be setup on their site? Not sure that fits your model.
rekzkarz.com
Having Dropbox be the repository for user generated forms would be great. Unfortunately Dropbox only allows sharing a folder so that anyone can read and write to it. So that would mean if someone uploaded a form, another person could come along and either modify it or delete it outright. I’ve been monitoring their forums and there have been requests for a read-only share for over a year. So i doubt they’ll be getting to it anytime soon. But I’ll keep my eye on it.
Although I am a Java developer by trade (in my day job), I could build an Android version, it’s just too much to take on for a one-man development shop. With the iPhone, iPad and Mac versions all in the works (plus my day job), it’s a lot for me to handle. Then there’s the issue of the app maybe not working on all variations of the Android to contend with. I just don’t want to go there at this time.
Thanks,
Brendan
Typing on my iPhone is difficult and I would like to generate records and upload them from my desktop to Tap Forms on my iPhone. How can I do this?
Hello Marcus,
There’s a whole Import function available to you inside Tap Forms. Just upload a CSV (comma separated values) text file to Tap Forms using either the built-in web server, FTP server, or Dropbox support on the Files tab area. Then when your file shows up in the Files area, tap on the blue circle icon with the arrow in it on the right side. A menu will come up asking if you want to import the file. Tap Forms will auto-create the form for you based upon the name of the file you upload. It will use the first row of the file for the names of the fields to create. Then it will import the rest of the rows as the data to go into those files.
Please tap the [?] button on the Files tab for more help on the matter.
Thanks,
Brendan
Hi
With regards to one-to-many relationships.
My application is a live inventory of items and equipment in my home office and testing workshop.
I would like to define:
– Store locations, that each contain a number of..
– Storage containers (cabinets, boxes etc), that each contain a number of..
– Filing units (packets, files, packages etc), that each contain a number of..
– Items and collections
I can see that if I define items in the order given, I can use your link to forms successfully to associate a list of items with a filing unit, a list of filing units with a storage container etc.
However, if I have already defined an item, and then a subsequently define a new filing unit (filing systems evolve!), how would I transfer the item to its new filing unit home, without having to recreate it?
And how do I identify within a lower chain entry (eg an item) the upper chain essentials (eg pocket, cabinet, location), so that, having searched on an item in the database, I then know where it is in the world (the basic point of the inventory!)
Or have I missed a trick?
If it helps, I really like the usability of TapForms and am having this same issue with HanDBase, which is less attractive to use anyway.
Regards
Paul
Hello Paul,
No, you haven’t missed a trick. At the moment you need to create new records off a linked field. Being able to select from a list of previously created records off a linked field is something I will be adding to a future update.
I also think you’re referring to an inverse relationship when you say “how do I identity within a lower chain entry (eg an item) the upper chain essentials”. Am I correct on that? If that’s the case, then you’re correct, I am not displaying the parent relationships from a child record. It’s a one-way ticket from parent to child.
Thanks,
Brendan
“”This post offered by you is very helpful for correct planning””
Any plans to add child to parent relationships?
Also, it would be cool to be able filter items based on a relationship. I have a system that requires “audits”. Basically, a customer has a link to a number of invoices. When the invoices complete, I add a ship date. Currently I have to add a check field for ‘completed’ and group by that field in order to show the orders that are still outstanding.
It would be cool if I could show open orders when clicking the link from the customer table and then see all orders with their list of customers from the “invoice” table. The UI and field selection in TapForms is the best for the iPad/iPhone, but the relational stuff needs a bit more flexibility to be useful.
Hi Scott,
I have thought about adding a switch to a relationship which will tell the linked form to display the inverse relationship somewhere. I would also like to add a cascade delete option to the form linking function too.
Thanks for the feature suggestions!
Brendan
Hi,
I bought this for one reason only. It appeared to be the only database on the iPad with decent reviews that allowed the creation of a relational database. Perhaps I’m confused.
I have created a form called “product” and on it I want to link to another form called “company” for example. Except that when I create a product and then click on the company field, none of the companies I have created appear in the search. Surely that’s not how it’s supposed to work? I’m sure I must be going wrong somewhere. Can you advise please?
Hello Shahid,
You will need to make sure you use the “Many to Many” link type for your Link to Form field. Then, when you tap the field in your record, the list will initially be empty, but then you can just tap on the checkmark button at the top and you’ll see a list of all the records you’ve created in the linked form. Tap on the ones you want to select, then tap the Select (#) button at the bottom. Those selected records will now be linked to your parent form’s record for that field.
Hope that makes sense!
Thanks!
Brendan
Fantastic, that works, many thanks! So impressive that you responded so quickly!
Hi Brendan,
Based on my readings of websites, I found your product to be the one, which is simple and relational. Does it work for iPAD? Does it have different types of relationships – one to many, many to many etc. I want to be clear about it before I buy. Please confirm.
Hello Raghava,
Yes, Tap Forms works on iPad. You’ll want to click on the button to buy Tap Forms HD. That’s the iPad specific version of Tap Forms. Also, Tap Forms supports one-to-many and many-to-many relationships using the Link to Form field type.
Thanks!
Brendan
Thanks Brendan for quick reply.
— Raghava