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MultiSession FILL®
- Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question and don't find the answer here, please feel
free to contact us at: info@dataintro.com
What does
the end-user need to use MSF?
The end-user (the person who fills the form) only needs to have
the free Adobe
Acrobat® Reader (v4.05 and higher) installed. No
proprietary plug-ins, fonts or libraries are needed. (back
to top)
Who can
use this technology?
Organizations that use PDF fillable forms can greatly benefit from
using MSF. When there is a PDF form that has to be filled in more
than one session, and printed (or submitted), there's a good opportunity
to use MSF. The ability to transfer data between different PDF forms
(On-line and Off-line) makes MSF unique. (back to
top)
How much
form data can I store?
It depends on the Acrobat® Reader version used.
MSF has been specially designed to work side by side with UltraForms®,
the leading 2D barcode generation technology for PDF forms, also
developed by Dataintro Software. The space provided by the Acrobat®
Reader application for data management perfectly matches the space
for data available in a 2D barcode.
A 2D barcode can "safely" hold around 1,500 characters
per symbol. However, the average number of characters present in
a fairly complex form* rarely exceeds 1,000 characters. With these
numbers in mind, MSF allows us to store (in Acrobat® 6.x and
higher) 4 different datasets** (from four completely-filled 1,000
character forms), or any combination of datasets not exceeding 4,000
characters.
When the Acrobat® Reader version used is 4.x or 5.x, the number
of datasets that can be stored is substantially higher, reaching
up to 32 different datasets with 1,000 characters each, or any combination
of datasets not exceeding 32,000 characters.
*We consider Missouri's DOR Tax Form MO-1040
(8 pages) a "fairly complex form". Click here
to see it.
** MSF organizes form data in "datasets". Each "dataset"
is a snapshot of the form data at a certain time, and is stored
with a different name assigned by the end-user. (back
to top)
Does MSF
save the entered data with the PDF form?
No. With MSF, itis the application (Acrobat® Reader) and not
the form, which stores the form data. The form data is always stored
apart from the PDF file. With MSF, the entered data and the PDF
form file are never saved together.
MSF has not been designed to save the data together with the PDF
form, and should not be considered a way of doing so. If there's
a real interest in saving the form data together with the PDF form,
we strongly suggest looking for a different solution. (back
to top)
Where is
the data stored?
The form data is stored in the computer hard drive by the application
(Acrobat® Reader). It is the application, and not the form,
which stores and retrieves the data when required by the end-user.
Each Acrobat® Reader version uses a different location in the
hard drive to store the data. (back to top)
Is
using MSF better than "saving" data in a PDF fillable
form?
Not necessarily. It is just a different way of handling PDF forms
that need to be filled in more than one session.
Consider the following examples:
If you are going to use digital signatures with your PDF forms,
comments in a PDF file as a result of a group work, or want to fill
a PDF form and send it by e-mail, then you need to have the ability
to save the data with the PDF form. In all these cases, MSF is clearly
not enough for what has to be accomplished.
Now, if you're not doing any of the above, and need to fill a PDF
form in different sessions then, MSF is exactly what you need. (back
to top)
Can
I fill a form, use MSF and send it through e-mail?
Yes, but the user-entered data will not travel with it.
Remember: with MSF, the data is never saved with the PDF form. (back
to top)
Why
can't Acrobat® Reader save form data?
In order to "save" a PDF file once filled with user-entered
data, the structure of the original PDF file must be altered. Acrobat®
Reader, when working with standard* PDF fillable forms, is not allowed
to alter the structure of the original PDF file. This is what prevents
Acrobat® Reader from "saving" standard PDF forms once
they've been filled with user-entered data. And this is why standard
PDF forms have to be completed in one session when Acrobat®
Reader is used.
* The word "standard" refers to
PDF forms not embedding Extended Rights or when used in Acrobat®
Reader versions prior to 5.1.
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