While Winlink can send any data in an email-like fashion, it excels at forms. To use forms correctly, you must design three items. The first 2 are HTML, while the last is pure text. The HTML forms will open in a browser window. One HTML is to allow for the entry of the data. Once you choose a template from your list and open it, you will see a standard-looking web form. This form, on submit, will send the information to Winlink’s built-in web server.
The second HTML file is built to view the data. When you open the message attachment, the internal web server will populate the fields, and you will have a formatted view of the data. Since this opens in a web browser, you can print or create a PDF from the data. This makes it easy to create a log of activity (like for an emergency).
The text file contains variables to be replaced, like the viewing form, but this will be the body of the message. This allows you to quickly check before putting the message in the outbox.
The Winlink process revolves around your inbox and outbox. Unless you connect to the server, nothing is transmitted. This allows you to send several items without having to wait for one to send before the next message can be created.
Let’s take a look at an example. This is the proposed weather form to be used in submitting VT reports for NWS. Let’s look at the entry form:
This was kept simple to match the reporting document that NWS uses. Note that the callsign and report time are populated for you, but can be changed. The second HTML form renders the information for use:
Here you will notice that several items from the form are assembled for use. For example, sky conditions, temperature, and barometric pressure are all assembled into the Current conditions entry. Now this simple example can easliy be recreated in the email body:
You will see that this closely matches the HTML version. This allows anyone to receive the form without requiring the HTML form, nor Winlink, to have a useful representation of the data.
If you have sent the message to an email address on the internet, that person will receive the data in XML format. You can also specify that a PDF file is sent so that the receiver also has a formatted version of the data.
If you are interested in the form, you can get it here. The zip file contains all three items. Remember that this needs to go into either the global templates or into the callsign folder (which I recommend) once expanded. Standard Templates are updated and will erase any new forms or overwrite any modified versions.