Help me! I can't decide!

[Otaku]

Right now I'm working on update the submission forms on the site and I've created two new forms. So far, I've only created Form 1 (Eigo Noto Submission Form) and Form 2 (Regular ES Submission Form), but they both have different layout styles.

THINGS I DON'T CARE ABOUT:
1. I care less about the content in the form right now.
2. I care less if you don't teach ES and/or Eigo Noto. I'm more interested to hear what you think of the layouts of the two forms and not colors or anything because I'll go back and add those things in later.

FORM 1: Has a new collapsible style layout to the submission form. But, like the old forms, if something should happen while filling out the form you lose all your data.

FORM 2: This form puts the various sections of the submission form on different pages.
COOL: The cool thing about this form is when you jump from page to page it automatically saves the data you wrote. It starts you off by writing your email address. Once you move to the 2nd page, a link to your form is sent your email. Then, should you get called off while you're filling out your form, go to your email, retrieve the link and continue filling it out.
NOT COOL, MAYBE: If you fill out multiple forms, the link that is sent to your email stays the same. This means, when you go and fill out another form, the information from the last form is still there and needs to get overwritten. The 'maybe' part about this feature being cool is that you don't have to keep filling out the personal information about yourself; you can keep reusing it.

Suggestions? Ideas? Thoughts? Bitchy comments?

[peet]

As someone who never submits materials, but has opinions about web design:
I like the first one. It's nice to have everything on one page, and without a wall-of-text.

I don't think it should be your problem if people sit down to submit something and don't have enough time to do it properly; or if they want to make a really long description but don't do it in a text file first in case they have a crashy browser or no time. Because for the people who DO know how much time they need to submit and how to not crash a browser, it's annoying to click through multiple pages and get emails they don't need.

Only thing I'd change about the first form is maybe also add red asterisks to the section headers for sections that have required fields within. That way you can tell where you have to add info before expanding the sections.

[Otaku]

I was leaning towards the first form myself. Thank for the feedback and thanks for the suggestion, I'll add those asterixs.

What do you think about starting off the form by leaving the last header open? I did this so that submitters will always see the Submit button, but maybe it's because I'm testing the form rather than filling one out, but when I test it, when I get down to clicking the Attachment heading, I 50/50 click it shut accidently. Suggestions?

[peet]

If possible, maybe the 'submit' button can go below all the subsections (so even if everything is collapsed, you still see the submit). But if that's too tricky, it's probably ok as is.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

Awww I was rather attached to the original submission page. But if I had to vote between these two I would lean slightly towards the collapsible one.

But the simplicity of doing one page at a time on form 2, is also a good format. Then again it doesn't seem as flexible as the collapisble, where upon the need to edit you can just open up that part of the form agian!

[Otaku]

@peet, I too thought about putting the submit button below the collapsable fields, but as soon as you insert this function into the form, all fields must get slotted into a 'collapse field'. I could put the submit button into a collapse field unto its own and not title the bar but I don't think that would look all that aesthetically pleasing.

@RB, you just don't like change. ;P I, too, like the 'save' option of Form 2 but like you I like the layout functions of Form 1. Why can't I just have my cake and eat it too...