How do I launch another app, open a URL, make a call, initiate an email, text or geocode an address in the app?
Where To Find The Action Button Field
User interactions on an Action Button are typically used to launch screens, create navigation or upload your form. They are also great for quick communication, launching mobile apps or even converting an address into GPS coordinates.
You can find this field on the menu within the Amplus Forms platform as pictured below.
Let us now explore four noteworthy uses for the Action field.
1. Custom URL Scheme
Did you know that you can launch other apps on the user’s device? This is achieved by using the “Open in Web Browser” interaction.
Though this is only possible if the target app supports custom URL schemes.
Examples of popular standard schemes include http://, https://, ftp://. These types of URL schemes should be registered with the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority. Non-standard or Custom URL schemes are used in practice as well. These are typically used to launch applications on devices.
An example of this would be:
fb://feed – Open Facebook app to the News Feed.
A popular request we get is if it is possible to communicate with Whatsapp or another messenger platform. There are two ways to do this.
On an Action Button Field, you can pass either of the following parameters to the “Open URL in App” user interaction.
- Using WhatsApp’s custom URL scheme, pass the parameter whatsapp://
- https://wa.me/27831231234 where 27831231234 is the number you would like to message
If you’d like to learn more about linking Whatsapp, you can read all about it here.
2. Open URL In App
If you need interaction with a web page, that’s possible too.
Maybe you would like a user to navigate to your website for any of a hundred reasons. For example, to view policy documents, complete a registration or action, etc. – whatever you may need it for.
This is achieved using the Open URL function in “app interaction.”
Setting up the field on the Amplus Forms platform (as pictured above) will open Google within the mobile app when the button is clicked.
3. Geocode Address
Geocoding attempts to convert address text into decimal latitude/longitude coordinates. The geocoded co-ordinate result (if any) is populated into this Interaction field. Result is “lat lon”, e.g. 48.998333 -122.750833
This is useful in scenarios where you have the address but need the coordinates. For example, you may have a customer list with their contact details and address but will in the future, require their coordinates to calculate distances between locations.
It would be pretty tedious to have to use Google Maps to find coordinates for each customer. The coordinates could be retrieved by a form and written back to a customer list data source.
4. Telephone Call / Start Email or Text Message
Initiating a telephone call, initiating an email or text message is as simple as the Geocoding above. Dial Phone Number, Create Email To and Create SMS To all initiate the action requested. There are no results in the form fields, only the action.
These are useful in scenarios where you want the user to contact or send a message to specific individuals associated with the situation. For example, you may have a subject matter expert list with their contact details and want the user to contact or sent them a message. e.g., a defect of a specific type was found and the division supervisor need to be notified.
It would be pretty tedious to step out of the app, look up the individual’s contact then, call, email or text the them and back into the app to continue their work.
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