What is a form?
A form is a way of getting information from visitors to your web site.
Bravenet uses forms for a variety of their services. The Site Announcer is a form; Join the Mailing List is a form;
Greeting Card pick up/send is a form; but the most common Bravenet form used is ... the e-mail form.
But what is explained on this page is equally true for all Bravenet forms.
The form on the right does not work. It's not a form, it's an image! It is there just so we all know what the basic Bravenet form looks like.
Let's take a look at a simple form and explain what each part does. If your form "doesn't work", this may explain why.
The first line of the FORM code is:
<form action="http://pub8.bravenet.com/emailfwd/senddata.php" method="post" enctype="multipart/form-data">
It should look exactly like that, except that it will use a pub## that's yours, not mine.
The second line of the FORM code is:
<input type="hidden" name="usernum" value="663225017" />
It should look exactly like that, except that it will use a usernum value that's yours, not mine.
The third line of the FORM code is:
<input type="hidden" name="cpv" value="1" />
... and that just tells people that this form uses revision 1 of the copy/paste code.
In the middle of the form are a series of questions to which your visitor supplies answers. Typically, they look like this:
What is your name?
<INPUT type=text NAME=name SIZE=20>
You can add as many questions like that as you want to. Remember that every NAME must be different or you will not receive all the answers to your questions.
The last line of the FORM code is:
</FORM>
Exactly like that - no more, no less .... and it's essential.
What happens when someone presses SEND?
The form data are sent to Bravenet's e-mail program. The data are automatically returned by e-mail to ..... the e-mail address that belongs with the membership profile for the usernum value in the form.
So, if your usernum is wrong (or incomplete) or you do not have a valid e-mail address in your membership profile ....
the mail cannot be delivered. The solution to those problems are obvious things to check and fix if necessary. Sometimes you may experience a long wait before your forms arrive - 99.99% of the time that delay is caused by your e-mail service and not Bravenet.
The next thing that happens at Bravenet is that - based on your usernum - your visitors are sent to a page that you have created on your web site known as your 'thank you' page. When you complete the e-mail form wizard/editor customization for your form, enter a valid web site address for the 'thank you' URL. It can be your 'home' page, or any other page on your site. And if there is no such page - you will get an error from the Bravenet e-mail program!!
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About This |
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The Basics |
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Colours in Forms |
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Making Changes |
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Validation |
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Power Stuff |