This topic describes the Help resources that are available for designing forms using Microsoft Office InfoPath 2003. These resources are available in the Help systems for InfoPath and the Microsoft Script Editor (MSE) (Microsoft Script Editor: Used to add text, edit HTML tags, and edit any Microsoft Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript) code in a data access page. You can also view your page in the Script Editor as it would appear in a Web browser.), and at various Microsoft Web sites.
The InfoPath Developer's Reference
The InfoPath Developer's Reference is a set of documentation that can help you develop forms and customize sample forms.
Open the InfoPath Developer's Reference
- On the Help menu, click Microsoft Office InfoPath Help.
- In the InfoPath Help task pane, click Table of Contents.
- In the table of contents, click InfoPath Developer's Reference.
The following table describes the sets of documentation in the InfoPath Developer's Reference.
| Resource | Description |
|---|
Programming Concepts | Conceptual information about programming InfoPath, including information about the InfoPath object model and form definition (.xsf) file (form definition file: An XML file with an .xsf extension that contains information about all other files and components used within a form, including user interface customizations, XML Schemas, views, business logic, events, and deployment settings.). |
Developer Sample Forms | Documentation about the developer sample forms included with InfoPath. The sample forms demonstrate some of the key form development features. |
InfoPath Object Model Reference | Information about the COM-based (Component Object Model (COM): A specification developed by Microsoft for building software components that can be assembled into programs or can add functionality to existing programs running on Microsoft Windows operating systems.) object model for interacting with InfoPath forms and their underlying XML documents. This set of topics provides reference information for the collections, objects, properties, methods, events, and enumerations in that object model. |
InfoPath XSF Reference | A complete set of reference documentation for the .xsf file, including all of its namespaces, groups, types, elements, and attributes. |
The InfoPath 2003 Software Development Kit
The Microsoft Office InfoPath 2003 Software Development Kit (SDK) contains the InfoPath Developer's Reference, as well as tools and additional documentation for developing forms. You can download the SDK from the Microsoft Office Update Web site or you can browse the contents of the SDK at the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) Web site. The information and tools in the InfoPath SDK are updated frequently.
Browse the InfoPath SDK
- Go to the home page for the InfoPath SDK on the MSDN Web site.
Download the InfoPath SDK
- Go to the Office Update Web site, and then click Downloads for Office 2003.
- Under InfoPath 2003 on the Downloads for Office 2003 page, click Publications.
- On the Publications for InfoPath 2003 page, click InfoPath 2003 Software Development Kit (SDK).
- On the Microsoft InfoPath 2003 Software Development Kit (SDK) page, click Download.
Save the file to your hard disk.
- Double-click the InfoPathSDK.msi file on your hard disk to start the setup program, and then follow the instructions in the Setup Wizard to complete the installation.
Microsoft Script Editor Help
By adding script to a form, you can add functions (function: A predefined XPath expression that returns a value based on the results of a calculation.) that automate and extend the functionality of the form. Microsoft Script Editor (MSE) enables you to develop script for a form and supports several scripting languages, including Microsoft Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript) (Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript): An interpreted, object-based scripting language that is a subset of the Microsoft Visual Basic programming language.) and JScript (JScript: An interpreted, object-based scripting language that borrows from C, C++, and Java. It is the Microsoft implementation of the ECMA 262 language specification.).
Open MSE Help
- In design mode, create a new, blank form or open an existing form.
- On the Tools menu, point to Programming, and then click Microsoft Script Editor.
The MSE program starts.
On the Help menu in MSE, click Microsoft Script Editor Help.
The following table describes the sets of documentation in MSE Help that are relevant to developing forms.
| Resource | Description |
|---|
Microsoft Script Editor Help | Information about using MSE, including how to customize the program, as well as techniques for developing and debugging script. |
Microsoft XML (MSXML) 5.0 SDK | Information about using Extensible Markup Language (Extensible Markup Language (XML): A condensed form of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) that enables developers to create customized tags that offer flexibility in organizing and presenting information.), the XML Document Object Model (DOM) (Document Object Model (DOM): A World Wide Web Consortium specification that describes the structure of dynamic HTML and XML documents in a way that allows them to be manipulated through a Web browser.), XML Schemas (XML Schema: A formal specification, written in XML, that defines the structure of an XML document, including element names and rich data types, which elements can appear in combination, and which attributes are available for each element.), XSL Transformation (XSLT) (XSL Transformation (XSLT): A language that is used to transform XML documents into other types of documents, such as HTML or XML. It is designed for use as part of XSL.), and XPath (XML Path Language (XPath): A language used to address parts of an XML document. XPath also provides basic facilities for manipulation of strings, numbers, and Booleans.). It also includes various developer guides and language references that discuss each of these XML-based technologies. |
JScript Reference | Information about using JScript, including a language reference and tutorial. |
VBScript Reference | Information about using VBScript, including a language reference and tutorial. |
Resources on the Web
The following table lists additional resources that provide information about developing forms. All of these resources are available on the Web and are updated frequently.
| Resource | Description |
|---|
InfoPath Developer Center | This Web site contains white papers, sample forms, tools, articles, and general information about developing InfoPath forms. To access the InfoPath Developer Center from within InfoPath, click Microsoft Office InfoPath Developer Resources on the Help menu. |
Office Developer Center | This Web site contains information about using programs in the Microsoft Office System as a development platform. Visit the Office Developer Center. |
Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) | This Web site contains information about a variety of Microsoft development platforms and tools. Visit the Microsoft Developer Network. |
Microsoft XML Developer Center | This Web site contains information about developing programs and services that use XML. Visit the Microsoft XML Developer Center. |
Microsoft Scripting Developer Center | This Web site contains information about using various Microsoft scripting languages, including JScript and VBScript. Visit the Microsoft Scripting Developer Center. |
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