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Google Forms to Replace Form Builder

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

After 12 years as Stanford’s primary web form service, University IT (UIT) will retire the Form Builder service in June 2020. In place of Form Builder, you can use Google Forms, a secure, easily-managed web forms solution that provides many of the same features and functions as Form Builder. 

Replacing Form Builder is one part of a larger UIT initiative to modernize Stanford’s web content management systems that currently rely on the Andrew File System (AFS). AFS is minimally supported and hosts web content created in unsupported, outdated, and insecure versions of web tools

What to use and when?

If you haven’t already, start using Google Forms to create new forms. For more complex form creation, Qualtrics is a secure and supported alternative. 

As you transition off Form Builder, keep the following key dates and information in mind.

  • March 31, 2020: You will no longer be able to create new Form Builder forms. 
  • June 30, 2020: UIT will retire the Form Builder service and all existing forms. 
  • June 1, 2022 (tentative): UIT will retire AFS (ir.stanford.edu) and replace central AFS services with modern systems.

How to transition?

If you’re a Form Builder user, a first step towards transitioning off the tool is to review your existing Form Builder forms. Remove any that are no longer active — be sure to check with other form admins first — and determine which forms you may need to replace. As you create new forms, remember to update old form links on webpages with the new form URLs.

Why Google Forms?

With Google Forms, you can create polls, quizzes, surveys, evaluations, and more within Google Drive. Build your own form using the tools in Google Forms, or choose from a variety of templates, such as event registration, course evaluations, and RSVPs.

Google Forms’ many features work seamlessly with other collaboration applications in G Suite (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drawings, etc.) through your Stanford login. These features include the ability to:

  • Create and preview the form as you build it using a simple interface
  • Export data to Excel, Sheets, or other spreadsheets
  • Share forms with collaborators for editing
  • Embed forms in webpages or protect them through single sign-on (SSO)
  • Store forms in Google Drive for easy access
  • Collect and store file uploads submitted with forms in Google Drive

Get more information about the Google Forms service and learn how to get started on the Google Forms service page.

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DISCLAIMER: UIT News is accurate on the publication date. We do not update information in past news items. We do make every effort to keep our service information pages up-to-date. Please search our service pages at uit.stanford.edu/search.