How do I build an online form that collects data straight into a table, with dropdowns that depend on each other?
A Sealique form is built from a table's fields: people fill it in a phone browser, each entry becomes a row, and a district dropdown depends on the province chosen.
Forms live inside the data tables of Sealique. Instead of a form that e-mails you answers to copy into Excel, the form writes directly into a table with typed fields, rules and history. Data collectors, enumerators, members and the public can all fill it in from a phone browser; nothing is installed.
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Key facts
- A form shows chosen fields of a table with labels, help text and a widget: text, long text, number, date, time, dropdown, radio buttons, checkboxes, toggle, e-mail, phone, web address.
- Dropdown options are typed in or taken from the values already in the column, and a dropdown can depend on another field, so choosing a province narrows the districts.
- Every entry is checked against the table's rules (required, unique, pattern, range, sign, decimals, exists in another table) before it is saved.
- Access is per form: assigned people who sign in, anyone with the link, or the public; a QR code of the link is ready to print.
- Entries become rows with the contributor's name and time; contributors see only their own rows, while charts, pivots and dashboards read all of them live.
How do I build a form?
Open a table, go to Forms and choose New form. Tick the fields to show, write a label and a help text for each, pick a widget (text, long text, number, date, time, dropdown, radio buttons, checkboxes, toggle, e-mail, phone, web address) and mark the required ones. A success message closes the form for the person who filled it in.
The builder suggests turning a column with repeated values into a dropdown, with the options taken from the table; a field linked to another table offers that table's values; and a Rules pane sets sign, bounds, decimals, length, pattern, date range or uniqueness on the table itself, so the rule holds for the grid, the imports and the API as well as the form.
What are dependent dropdowns?
A choice field can have a parent field and a list of options per parent value: province then district, category then sub-category, school then class. The second dropdown shows only the options of the chosen parent, and an entry with a combination that does not exist is refused with a clear message.
Who can fill it in?
Assigned people sign in and find the form under Forms; their rows carry their name. Anyone with the link fills it in without an account. A public form is open to everyone. Each form has a link and a QR code to print on a poster or a flyer, a switch to pause it, and a counter of submissions.
Where do the answers go?
Into the table, as rows with the contributor and the time, recorded in the change history like any other edit. Contributors see only what they added; editors and managers see everything. From there the rows feed column statistics, charts and pivots on the Analysis page, dashboards with a public link, CSV and Excel exports, and the read API.
Data collection forms, step by step
Create or open a table
Sign in, open Data tables and create a table from a CSV, an Excel file or a blank schema.
Add a form
Open the Forms tab, choose New form, tick the fields to show, write labels and help text, and pick a widget for each field.
Set up dropdowns and rules
Turn columns with repeated values into dropdowns, make one dropdown depend on another, and add rules such as required or greater than zero.
Choose who can answer
Assign people, allow anyone with the link, or make it public; copy the link or print the QR code.
Watch the rows arrive
Each entry appears in the table with the contributor and time; analyse them on the Analysis page or put them on a dashboard.
Data collection forms is included with a Sealique account; the processing happens in your browser and on our servers, nothing is shared with third parties.
What Data collection forms includes
- Twelve widgets, labels, help texts, required fields and a success message
- Dropdown options typed in or taken from the table, dependent dropdowns
- Fields linked to another table
- Rules enforced on every entry
- Assigned, link or public access with a printable QR code
- Entries as rows with history, analysis, dashboards, exports and API
Questions people ask
Can people fill in the form without an account?
Yes. Forms with link or public access need no account; assigned forms ask people to sign in so each row is attributed to them.
Can one dropdown depend on another?
Yes. Give a choice field a parent field and options per parent value: choose a province and the district list shows only its districts.
Does it work offline in the field?
No. The form opens in the browser and needs a connection when submitting, but it is a light page that works on 2G or 3G.
Can I validate the answers?
Yes. Every entry passes the table's rules: required, unique, pattern, length, number range or sign, date range, one of a list, exists in another table.
Can I export the answers to Excel?
Yes. The table exports to CSV or Excel at any time, and the rows can also be read over the API.
Can I print a QR code for the form?
Yes. Each form with link or public access has a QR code of its link, ready for a poster or a flyer.
Does it cost anything?
No. Forms are part of the data tables included with a Sealique account: no card, no watermark, no entry cap.