How to record historical date periods, but the dates cannot have any gaps?

  • langdale_it
    Asked on September 11, 2018 at 8:23 AM

    Hi

    I want my applicant to insert dates of employment and dates of address occupancy - but the dates cannot have any gaps.

    If the dates of employment do not run concurrently the user cannot move onto the next part of the questionnaire..

    Whats the best way to achieve this please..??

    Thanks

  • daisy JotForm UI Developer
    Replied on September 11, 2018 at 9:56 AM

    Please follow the steps below:

    1) Create 2 "Date Picker" fields for dates of employment and dates of address occupancy and "Next Part of Questionnaire":

     

    1536674002Screen Shot 2018 09 11 at 16 Screenshot 10



    2) Add the condition below:

    https://www.jotform.com/help/350-How-to-Skip-Pages-Using-Conditional-Logic

     

    1536674040Screen Shot 2018 09 11 at 16 Screenshot 21

     

    Then if the two date fields are equal next page can be seen by the user:

     

    How to record historical date periods, but the dates cannot have any gaps? Image 32

     

    Feel free to ask more questions if you need further assistance.




  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 11, 2018 at 10:33 AM

    Hi 

    Sorry - but thats lost me!

    I need my applicant to complete his employment history (mm/yy).

    Job 1 - 01/1990 - 04/1994

    Job 2- 05/1994 - 12/2001

    Job 3 - 01/2002 - 09/2018 or today


    So there cant be any date gaps in job employment dates ie they must run concurrently

  • Mike_G JotForm Support
    Replied on September 11, 2018 at 2:53 PM

    Thank you for the clarification.

     

    I have created a form based on the information you provided.

    I would suggest that you clone it first and test it to see if it would really meet your requirements. Otherwise, please let us know.

    Here's the form — https://form.jotform.com/82534529481967

    Related Guide: How-to-Clone-an-Existing-Form-from-a-URL

  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 4:14 AM
  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 4:25 AM

    Hi

    I'm afraid it still lets me leave gaps in employment ...see attached..1536827138error Screenshot 10

  • BJoanna
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 8:02 AM

    I cloned the form my colleague provide you and I was able to replicate the issue only when I manually changed the "Job 2 — From". To prevent this set the "Job 2 — From" and "Job 3 — From" fields to be Read-only.

    1536839688read Screenshot 10

  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 8:13 AM

    Hi

    Yes - that nearly works - but I'm now getting this error1536840777Job2 Error Screenshot 10

  • David JotForm Support Manager
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 10:04 AM

    You are selecting a present date in the "Job 2 - To" field. Try "12/2016". I cloned your form, and it works fine: https://form.jotform.com/82553986510968 

    1536847413works Screenshot 10

    Make sure to disable the "read-only" feature for "Job 3 — To" field.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 11:02 AM

    Sorry - but I still get the same errors... as soon as I enter the 1st from to detail the error comes up. I'm not selecting anything..if prefills the calendars and shows the same error

  • David JotForm Support Manager
    Replied on September 13, 2018 at 11:46 AM

    I needed to start fresh with a new demo form. I have used the "DatePicker Year Month" widget. Please try it here: https://form.jotform.com/82553986510968 

    1536853399readonly Screenshot 10

    Submission result:

    1536853475Result Screenshot 21

    Hope this helps.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 28, 2018 at 9:43 AM

    Hi

    Yes this nearly works now, the only issue would arise if someone finished 31st May and started their next job 1st of June. The form would then see it as a gap in employment - even though it wasnt. This will confuse the applicant...

  • langdale_it
    Replied on September 28, 2018 at 10:17 AM
  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on September 28, 2018 at 11:50 AM

    Could you let us know if it would be okay when the month & year of job 2 From can be the same as Job 1 To? If so, we can change the conditions to meet this requirement.

    We will wait for your response. Thank you! 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 1, 2018 at 6:29 AM

    Hi

    Yes it can be the same - just not before (obviously!!)

    Many Thanks

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 1, 2018 at 7:33 AM

    Thanks for you confirmation. Please allow us sometime to check on this and get back to you with relevant information. 

    Thank you for your patience. 

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 2, 2018 at 8:10 AM

    I am sorry for the delay in responding back. I have checked your JotForm https://form.jotformeu.com/82622036010340 again and it looks like that you have already changed the conditions as per your requirement. As I tested the form, the error messages seem to be displaying properly only if the previous to date is less than next from date.

    If you still need any further assistance in this regard, please let us know. We will be happy to assist. 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 3, 2018 at 3:54 AM

    Hi

    No I only changed the text, I still need to have the conditions changed so the from date can be the same as the previous to date (but obv not befoe..)

    Thanks

  • BJoanna
    Replied on October 3, 2018 at 5:55 AM

    I am sorry but I do not understand what is exactly the issue with your form. 

    You previously said that if someone finished 31st May and started their next job 1st of June the form would then see it as a gap. However, you are now using the DatePicker Year Month widget which does not have a day option. 

    I tested your form and as far as I can see it is working properly. 

    Can you please provide us more details and tell us what exactly is an issue. If possible also provide us a screenshot of the issue. 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 3, 2018 at 10:05 AM

    Hi

    The problem would be that the user would enter the end date as say 5/16 (as they finished on 31st May 2016) but their next start date would be 6/16 (1st June 2016) - the form would therefore see it as a gap..

  • Mike_G JotForm Support
    Replied on October 3, 2018 at 11:35 AM

    I have checked the form in your account and I did not see the issue that you described in your last reply.

    1538580832t11 31 22 Screenshot 10

    Perhaps you were able to fix the issue on your end already. Otherwise, please feel free to let us know and give us more examples.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 9, 2018 at 6:09 AM

    I get errors when I do the same as you...1539079728not seen as gap Screenshot 101539079740seen as gap Screenshot 21

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 9, 2018 at 8:31 AM

    I think I am able to replicate the issue with the form. Please allow me sometime to check this up and get back to you with relevant information.

    Thanks!

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 10, 2018 at 6:47 AM

    Hi

    Do you have an update for me?

    Thanks


  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 10, 2018 at 8:18 AM

    I am sorry for the delay. It looks like that the validation of the values of the widget 'DatePicker Year Month' in the condition are not being done correctly and using only month for comparing the values which seems to be causing the issue. The message is being displayed only if the month is greater than the other month and not checking the Year value. We'll need to run few more tests on this and likely to be sent to our backend team for further investigation.

    However, I am also checking for other alternatives and get back to you at the earliest possible that can help in achieving your requirement.

    Thank you for your patience. 

  • AgilityAssoc.Canada
    Replied on October 10, 2018 at 11:59 AM

    Hi,

    Just my 2 cents worth. The date widget must be set as, yyyy,mm,dd otherwise it is interpreted as text and not a date. So use ISO date settings and nothing else.

    I have reported this issue many times. It has significant issues when using integration with sheets.

    I hope I'm not interfering and not giving you unassociated info, just thought I should mention it.

    Best, Robert 

  • BJoanna
    Replied on October 10, 2018 at 12:51 PM

    @AgilityAssoc.Canada

    Thank you for the assistance. However, in this case, the issue should not be related to the Date Format.

    @langdale_it

    I reviewed the whole thread again and I think that you should use a basic Date Picker field instead of the "DatePicker Year Month" widget.

    The error message you previously provided was related to Default Date > Current option.

    How to record historical date periods, but the dates cannot have any gaps? Image 10

    This can be resolved if the Default Date option is set to None, so that the users have to enter the dates. 

    Here is a demo form that should work - https://form.jotform.com/82553500830955 

    The custom error messages are shown if the Job 2 - To and  Job 3 - To fields are empty, so the conditions to show this field will have to be modified. 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 15, 2018 at 11:57 AM

    Hi

    Nearly there !!

    My problem now is that the labels are wrong (they might not be jobs) as the period they enter might be for unemployment / maternity leave etc. But if I change the labels it breaks the conditional logic.

    can the conditional be based on field id rather than the label name? (ie job1).

    I'll post the url that explains better


    Thanks



    1539618821label errors Screenshot 10


  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 15, 2018 at 12:02 PM

    https://eu.jotform.com/build/82874272769372

  • David JotForm Support Manager
    Replied on October 15, 2018 at 1:13 PM

    The conditions are not broken. The label is also updated in the conditions as soon as you change it in the field, example:

    1539623617update Screenshot 10

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 16, 2018 at 6:38 AM

    Ah - maybe my issue was that the fields were renamed to the same name?? I guess they need to be unique?

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 16, 2018 at 6:45 AM

    Perhaps not - I still get errors..see attacehd1539686675today Screenshot 101539686684error Screenshot 21

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 16, 2018 at 8:42 AM

    Unfortunately, it is not possible to set the conditions based on the field IDs. Changing the field label shall not break the conditions. The conditions should be updated with the new field labels. The missing field can appear when the field is deleted from the form. 

    Please give it a try and get back to us you are still experiencing any issue. We will be happy to take a look again. 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 17, 2018 at 4:31 AM

    Hi

    But you can see that the field is not deleted - just renamed..

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 17, 2018 at 8:40 AM

    Ok. I have checked it further and it is happening only with the field in the Target group to check.

    153977996917102018 181006 Screenshot 10

    This must be happening due to the field to be compared which needs to be checked again after any change on the form. The field names on the other rules or action set are working with the changed name without any issue.

    Hope this information helps! 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 4:19 AM

    Hi

    Still struggling I'm afraid..

    https://form.jotformeu.com/82901558854365

    When I fill in todays date (period 1 to) period 2 field disappears and I cannot continue..

    Sorry..

    Ian

  • Adrian
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 6:32 AM

    The form that you have cloned is set up to work if the periods are filled from oldest to newest.

    So, if you fill in today's date in "Period 1 To", there are no further dates available to be selected therefore Period 2 and 3 should be hidden.


    If you meant this to work in a different way, please create a new thread from https://www.jotform.com/contact and give us as many details as possible on how you want this to work by providing us with possible scenarios.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 7:05 AM

    Hi

    This is what I need to achieve...

             
      Date From Date To Employer or  Reason for non-employment
    1 04/2018 Todays date Leicester City Council  
    2 01/2018 03/2018   Unemployed
    3 07/2017 12/2017 Morrisons Supermarkets  
    4 05/2014 06/2017   Child Care
    5 09/2012 05/2014   College
             
             

    Some dates may be the same (if they changed jobs during the month) whereas if the job finishes in one month but starts in the next month it shouldnt be seen as a 'gap'.

    Is this possible?

    Thanks

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 7:22 AM

    if the job finishes in one month but starts in the next month it shouldnt be seen as a 'gap'.

    You mean to say that the items difference in the items 1 and 2, 2 and 3, 3 and 4 (Example:3 - 07/2017 and 4 - 06/2017) cannot be displayed as gap. If the 3 from date is 08/2017, that shall be displayed as gap. Is that correct?

    We will wait for your response. Thank you! 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 7:39 AM

    Hi

    Yes thats correct.

    Thanks

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 7:42 AM

    As you can see we need to see the applicants full and complete job history, we are getting too many applications with gaps in their employment history. 

    We will also need the same logic condition for their home addresses history  if we manage to crack this issue!!

    Thanks

  • Victoria_K
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 9:37 AM

    Hello,

    Let me clarify one more thing. Period 2 and Period 3 dates From should not be read-only now, users should be able to enter another date of the same month there. Is this correct? 

    If yes, would it work for you if we hide the day field so users could enter only month and year?

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 10:01 AM

    Hi

    Yes hiding the day field is fine,

    So long as there is a meaningful error message when a gap is shown  thats fine. So I dont think they need to be read only.

    I'm hoping you understand what I'm trying to achieve.. I've probably not explained it well to begin with.....


  • Victoria_K
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 11:10 AM

    Thank you. Please allow me some time to get a possible solution for you. This probably requires to start fresh with the conditions. I will update you as soon as possible.

  • Victoria_K
    Replied on October 18, 2018 at 7:16 PM

    Hello again,

    Please try the next form: https://form.jotform.com/82903394214961 

    I was not able to find any other way to compare the dates unless adding more fields to analyze the dates. There're Form Calculation and Substring widgets on the form for every date picker. Calculation widget captures the string of date entered and Substring widget gets the year-month value of it:

    153990427102 08 16 Screenshot 10

    This way conditions check if From date is before To and produce an error if incorrect. The other type of conditions checks if the year+month value inside of substrings is the same and produces an error if they do not match. 

    Hope this helps. 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 19, 2018 at 3:10 AM

    Hi

    I get an error before I complete the second period to

    1539933023untitled Screenshot 10

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 19, 2018 at 3:11 AM

    Also can the fields be in DD/MM/YY rather than YY/MM/DD??


  • Randy
    Replied on October 19, 2018 at 8:23 AM

    Yes, you can use DD/MM/YY format on your form.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 19, 2018 at 8:54 AM

    But the form still doesnt work

  • BJoanna
    Replied on October 19, 2018 at 10:38 AM

    I checked the form with my colleague Victoria and she was able to fix the issue with the error message.

    Please test the form again it should work properly now - https://form.jotform.com/82903394214961 

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 20, 2018 at 6:12 AM

    Hi I'm afraid I still get errors.. (see attached.

    1540030324error2 Screenshot 10

    However please see this form I have created..

    https://eu.jotform.com/build/82912080301344

    All I need is

    1) The date fields to be a date chooser (MM/YY)

    2) Todays MM/YY to be automatically inserted (read only) uneditable

    3) The 'from' date automatically copied to the previous to date (read only) uneditable

    Is this easier??

    Thanks

    1540030127Revised Screenshot 21


  • Victoria_K
    Replied on October 20, 2018 at 7:50 AM

    On your first screenshot, it seems that you have entered the year 2013 and this input does not meet the condition to be after the TO date of previous period. Have we misunderstood this requirement of yours? 

    When creating a test form, I have also had a though to use short text fields for the users to enter dates manually. But, I'm afraid that there won't be easier way to compare those inputs correctly. 

    Thank you!

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 20, 2018 at 8:39 AM

    Hi

    The form is designed to start with the current employment and go back in time. Maybe we have our wires crossed, and are over complicating it., but can we use the revised design? I thin k that would be much easier..

    Thanks


  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 20, 2018 at 11:02 AM

    We are sorry that it is taking longer than expected. Please allow us some time to work on it and get back to you at the earliest possible.

    Thank you!

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 21, 2018 at 5:34 AM

    Ok = Please dont spend any more time on the original form.

    I think my revised form will work fine, if you can help me with the 3 issues...

    https://eu.jotform.com/build/82912080301344

    All I need is

    1) The date fields to be a date chooser (MM/YY)

    2) Todays MM/YY to be automatically inserted (read only) uneditable

    3) The 'from' date automatically copied to the previous to date (read only) uneditable

    Is this easier??

    Thanks

  • Victoria_K
    Replied on October 21, 2018 at 7:25 AM

    If you need a date chooser in a format of MM/YY, you can try DatePicker Year Month widget. But, I'm afraid there will not be any option to implement your other 2 requirements with it. 

    If you decide to keep text inputs for dates on your form, you can set them read-only via field properties:

    154012101814 22 22 Screenshot 10

    To copy a value of one field to another, you can add a conditional statement. Here is related guide: How-to-Pass-Field-Value-to-Another-Field

    Hope this helps.

  • langdale_it
    Replied on October 22, 2018 at 6:08 AM

    Hi

    If I just use text field input for each date, how can I insert todays date automatically and make it read only??

  • Kiran Support Team Lead
    Replied on October 22, 2018 at 7:14 AM

    Unfortunately, it is not possible to fill the date automatically. In order to fill a text field input with date it is again required to a date field and copy it using a condition.