Best approach for [back][next] form submitting

Question

I've been doing a [back][next] to [finish] set of forms for user input fields, think of it like a questionnaire for user info where the user can still go back to the previous pages to update their info.. until it reaches the end of the pages to [finish]

I've done this before (hardcoded) but my code is too long and all the debugging gave me a headache. My first approach was:

• Use a PHP case to find out which phase/step the user is in now
• If the user clicks on [next], the page variable appends a +1 to the page count
• If the user clicks on [back], the page var deducts -1 to the page count, until it reaches [finish]
• If the user leaves the page for some reason and comes back to it, the session/cookie saved fills in the form values and which phase/step the user is in

This method of mine isn't very dynamic as the php case is hardcoded to a set of page numbers & phases, if the client wants to add another page; that can be a problem.

I'm new to Drupal; maybe Drupal already has some part of the API that makes this [back][update][next][finish] easier, or a easier way to store cookies? If by PHP only, is there a better approach?

Answer 1

You should always use the Form API for forms, unless you really wanted to use the Webform module. The learning curve it steeper but you gain more maintainability (everything is in code from the start) and flexibility. You can create multisteps form with the API. See form_example_wizard.inc and Drupal 7 multistep forms using variable functions (also with Drupal 6) for examples. Another solution, is to use the CTools' wizard API.

Answer 2

Try using the webform module like so: http://drupal.org/node/324779