Did you know that capturing signatures directly within Dynamics forms is possible? This feature holds tremendous potential, whether it’s for obtaining work order sign-offs in the Field Service Mobile app or securing customer approvals for purchase orders. Despite its significance, the Pen Input control remains underutilized in many Dynamics environments, presenting a valuable opportunity for customization and enhanced functionality.
Understanding the Pen Input Control
The Pen Input control enables users to write directly onto a record’s form, offering a straightforward yet powerful method for capturing signatures or other handwritten input. However, there are nuances to consider, which we’ll delve into later.
How to Add the Pen Input Control in Power Apps
Navigating to the Power Apps maker portal, locate the target main form where you wish to incorporate the Pen Input control—such as the work order form for capturing customer signatures. Ensure that all updates are made within a solution, adhering to best practices.
Select the Components in the ribbon, navigate to the Input section, and find the Pen Input Control. Drag and drop the control onto the form at your chosen location. Upon placement, input the multiline text field that the control will reference, ensuring its accuracy for seamless functionality.
Or, add the Pen Input control directly to a multiline text field on the form, through the Properties pane. Fine-tune the control’s settings, such as visibility on different versions (e.g., mobile), and adjust label orientation or hide labels for optimal user experience.
Before saving and publishing the form, address crucial considerations such as data storage and character limits. Dynamics stores signature data as a base64 encoded string within the multiline text field, necessitating adjustments to the field’s character count limit to accommodate larger data sizes. Make sure that adding this field to the form does not cause any data related issues.
In Conclusion
Incorporating the Pen Input control into Dynamics forms empowers users with the ability to capture signatures seamlessly, enhancing workflow efficiency and user experience. Despite a few intricacies regarding data storage and character limits, leveraging this capability opens new avenues for customization and functionality within the Dynamics environment.
For additional information on different Power Apps Form Controls, click here.
Happy Developing!