Form Troubleshooting

Is it my Host or my Form?

If you have followed the tutorial on how to receive your form results by email, but are still receiving errors or not receiving the form results properly, it's time to do a bit of detective work to find out if it is the form that is not correct or if it is a web hosting issue.

The first thing you should do is to right click on your form and select Form Properties from the menu that appears. In the dialog box that appears, click on the Option button. Go through each tab and see what information is entered. Verify that everything is correct under each and every tab, changing items as appropriate. When you close the dialog box, you will receive a prompt asking if you want to remove the email address. Choose NO.

Now go to Tools > Recalculate Hyperlinks. This forces FrontPage to update all of the hidden VTI files that are needed for the server extensions. Make a small change to the text somewhere on the contact page to force the page to republish. Republish your site. [Note that you need to "publish" your site and not use FTP.] Test your live form again.

If you are still receiving an error, chances are it is a server extension issue. Even if your host says that the server extensions are installed, they may not be set up correctly or may need to be reinstalled. If your server extensions have been reinstalled, you will need to republish your site.

Important Update: If you are being hosted on a UNIX server, be aware that Microsoft stopped supporting the server extensions for this platform in June 2006. Many hosts are discontinuing server extension support for this reason. See the information in the sidebar for more information.

Get a Second Opinion

To determine if this is a hosting issue, you should try publishing your site to a different server. I recommend signing up for a free hosting account through Tripod (http://www.tripod.lycos.com/). There are some special instructions for FrontPage here: http://help.lycos.com/faq.php?categoryid=45

If your form works, then you will know that it is a hosting issue with your current web host and can go back to their technical support department to explain that things work on a different server. They should then be able to track down the problem. If the form just won't work on your server, ask your web host for an alternate form mail script. They probably have a CGI script and should be able to provide you with instructions for using this for your form.

If Nothing Works

• Seriously consider using another form mail option. One of the biggest problem with the FrontPage form handler is that it allows your form to become a spam magnet since your email address is visible in the html coding. It won't take long before those spam-bots harvest your email address and soon you form will be flooded with spammers.
• Choose a different form mail handler script. (See the sidebar for more details.) Even if you have never added a script to your site before, if you can read and follow directions, these options are very easy -- even for the beginner.
• If you have your heart set on the FrontPage form handler, consider moving Web Hosts to one that offers the Windows Server platform.
• Last, ask yourself do you really need a form. Many times, just having clear contact information is enough.

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There's A Better Way:

Forms are a hot item for many web masters. Forms make it easy to gather information, get feedback, and make it easy for customers and visitors to contact them. The problem isn't the form, it's finding a way to have the form processed so that the web master can get the results by email. In order for your form to work, it needs a script.

ASP form: If your host supports ASP (active server pages), you can use a handy, easy script to process your form. You can find the details at Expression-Web-Designer-Help.com. Even if you have never had to use any type of scripting method before, this one is easy to follow. Just read the instructions and follow along step by step.

PHP form: If your host supports PHP, you can use another very easy script to process your form. You can find details and more information at JamesHuggins.com. Once again, the instructions are easy to follow. Just read carefully and then dive right in.

Use a 3rd party form service: If you want to make things extra easy, you can use a third-party site to process your forms and then send you the results. Many are free but will have a monthly fee for more than one form. If you can copy and paste code, you can build a form for your site. Two good choices are Wufoo.com and Freedback.com.