Web-based surveys, polls, forms and questionnaires are a popular way of gathering data. However, until now there's been little suitable software available at the low end of the market. Quask's FormArtist Presto addresses this gap in the market by providing a low-cost way to create professional looking results.

The basic concept is very simple: you design your form, upload it to your Web server, send a link to the participants via email, who then complete the form. Response data is emailed back to you and you can optionally display it in the form of an Opinion Meter on your Web site. This summarises the functionality of the Presto version reviewed here - the more expensive versions add desirable extra features for large-scale surveys, such as database functionality, although the interface and core technology is identical.

Quask has attempted to make FormArtist easy to use and in general it has succeeded, despite a couple of niggles. Starting the program presents you with a wizard that lets you choose a page style and basic contents from the supplied libraries. Unfortunately, it doesn't guide you to the predefined forms library, which is more useful for the novice. You can then start to populate the form page(s) with the wide range of objects, including text input boxes, check boxes, drop-down lists and 'Emoticons'. This latter proprietary object is a five-point slider with an animated icon. Advanced capabilities include the ability to assign a grid to a picture so respondents can mark a photograph.

Users with any experience of graphics editing packages will feel reasonably comfortable with the user interface, but for the rest it's best to work your way through the comprehensive help file to get a feel for the design capabilities of the package - especially the more advanced options.

After designing the form, it's time to deploy it to a Web server. Here, the enterprise roots of the product are more obvious. There's no need for programming or scripting, but your Web server must be correctly configured to support the PHP or ASP scripting used, including the correct directory structure. You'll also need an operational SMTP server and (optionally) an FTP server. There's a reasonable amount of information on how to configure all this, but you'll have to get your hands dirty at some stage. If you're not running PHP/ASP scripting on your site, it could be daunting to set this up. Quask provides a deployment profile for a US Web hosting company (Blue Domino), which isn't useful for UK users. You should discuss the required setup with your ISP or IT department first. Once your Web server is configured, the form is uploaded via FTP or from a local drive and a URL generated for it, which you can link to your Web site or mail to respondents. Automatic email notification is only included in the Standard and Professional versions.

Results are sent to you via HTML email, including the text of the responses and a viewable copy of the original completed form (a free viewer is available from Quask). If you've assigned the Add to Opinion Meter property to any objects, the accumulated data will be displayed on a separate Web page. There's no database functionality in the Presto version - FormArtist Standard includes a built-in database and data export functionality; the Professional version adds integration with external databases and contact management software.

It's a good attempt to make this product accessible to novices and the end results are excellent. However, the back-end setup could cause you grief if you're a non-technical user.

Contact: Quask (01926) 624830
www.quask.com

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