Gravity Forms v1.9 is now available via the downloads page. This is a major feature release that introduces several highly anticipated features such as Save and Continue!

We are taking a slightly different approach to the roll out of this major release. We have made Gravity Forms v1.9 available to new users and to existing users via the downloads page. However, we will not be deploying it via automatic update until we release v1.9.1.

Why? Because a follow up to a major feature release such as this is inevitable and we’d prefer that existing users do not need to automatically update multiple times within a short time period if it can be avoided. We are taking deployment cues from managed WordPress hosting services who routinely deploy major WordPress updates only after a subsequent maintenance release.

If you would like to update an existing site prior to automatic update being deployed, you can certainly do so by downloading v1.9 from the downloads page and manually updating your site.

Enough with the boring details, let’s take a look at what is in the v1.9 release of Gravity Forms…

Save and Continue

The most highly anticipated new feature is the introduction of Save and Continue functionality that allows users to save their progress and return to the form at a later date to complete and submit the form.

Save and Continue is enabled within the Form Settings. When enabled, a user filling out a form will see an option to save their progress next to the submit or multi-page form buttons. When clicked, the user will be presented with a unique URL that can be used to return to the form and given the option to receive an email containing their unique URL so that they do not misplace it.

Using Gravity Forms Notifications and Confirmations you can customize what is presented to the user when they opt to save their progress and continue later.

Please note: Save and Continue is a user facing feature. It does not allow the administrator to view and edit saved progress. It is strictly designed to allow a user to save their progress and return to complete and submit the form at a later date. The ability to view and edit saved progress is being considered.

Placeholders

Gravity Forms now natively supports placeholders. Independent from a Field’s Label, Sub-Labels or Default Values, a Placeholder will utilize HTML5 when available and fallback to JS when not available. Placeholders are configured via the new Appearance tab when editing a field within the Form Editor.

We have also taken things a step further and implemented placeholder support within drop down/select fields. When configured, the Placeholder will appear as the first item in the drop down. The placeholder does not act as a default value and is not stored if the user does not select another value. If the field is marked as required the placeholder will not be a valid selection.

Name Field Enhancements

The Name Field has been overhauled to provide more granular control. The Name Field now supports capturing a prefix, first name, middle name, last name and suffix. You can configure which of the fields are displayed and customize the sub-labels and placeholders for each.

With this overhaul we have removed the field type setting for the Name Field. You now simply configure which inputs you would like presented to the user. With the removal of the field type setting we have also removed the option for a simple single input Name Field. If you have a need for a single input Name Field then you can use a Single Input field and give it a Field Label of Name. Existing forms utilizing the simple field type will not be impacted.

Address Field Enhancements

Like the Name Field, we have also overhauled the Address Field to provide more granular control over the inputs and sub-labels. No more using hooks to customize the sub-labels. We are far from finished with the Address Field and will be enhancing it further in future releases.

Address Field Linking

Have you ever wanted to allow a user to duplicate Billing Address information already entered for the Shipping Address with a single click? Now you can. Address Field Linking allows you to link two Address Fields and present the user with an option to populate the contents of the field with the values from another. This will be particularly useful for order forms.

Form Editor Drag-n-Drop

The Form Editor has been enhanced so that you can now drag-n-drop fields from the Toolboxes and place them anywhere on the form. This allows you to quickly place the fields exactly where you’d like them without them automatically being placed at the bottom and then having to drag them into position. Fields can still be added by simply clicking on the field in the toolbox.

Sub-Label Control

You can now control the sub-label on advanced fields from within the field editor without requiring the use of hooks. Any field that makes use of sub-labels will now allow you to customize the sub-label values from within the General tab of the Field Editor. Sub-Labels can still be customized via the localization file or hooks.

Field Settings Enhancements

The Field Settings have been consolidated into 3 categories: General, Appearance, and Advanced.

New Appearance related field settings have been introduced that allow you to control the Description Placement and Sub-Label Placement on a field by field basis. Configuring these settings on a field will override any form wide settings applied in the Form Settings.

New Form Settings

New settings have been added to the Form Settings that allow you to control the visual placement of both the Field Description and any Sub-Labels on Advanced Fields that may exist on the form. You can now configure a form so that the description is placed either above or below the field and sub-labels placed either above or below the individual inputs.

Form Export/Import Overhaul

Form Export/Import functionality has been overhauled to utilize a JSON file format instead of XML.

Consolidated Updates

The Gravity Forms Updates area (Forms > Updates) will now reflect any updates for official Gravity Forms Add-Ons. This will allow you to quickly see if any Gravity Forms related updates are available and allow you to execute the updates. This also limits the number of outgoing requests for updates by consolidating the update requests into a single request.

Please note: Only Gravity Forms Add-Ons built on the Gravity Forms Add-On Framework will support consolidated updates. All of our Add-Ons are in the process of being updated to support the Add-On Framework. Until this process is completed not all of our Add-Ons may be reflected within the Updates page.

Background Automatic Updates

There is now a Gravity Forms Setting that allows you to enable background automatic updates.

Background Automatic Updates function just like the background automatic updates in WordPress itself when enabled. Background automatic updates have been very successful in enabling WordPress core to keep sites up to date. Users not updating plugins has historically been one of the biggest issues facing the community as it relates to security.

We have opted to NOT enable Background Automatic Updates by default, for now. We highly recommend users enable this feature in the Gravity Forms Settings.

Background automatic updates currently only execute maintenance releases (ex. X.X.1, X.X.2) and major feature releases (ex. X.1, X.2, X.3) will still require you to click on the update link in order to execute the update.

Don’t own a Gravity Forms Yet? What are you waiting for? Purchase a copy today!