Form Factory

The Form Factory is an AI-powered form generator. Describe what you want, and it produces a prompt that, when given to an LLM, generates a complete form configuration that you can use directly or customize further.

Source: factory.yml

What It Does

The Form Factory generates a structured prompt that you paste into an AI assistant (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc.). The AI returns a complete schema, uischema, data, and template configuration ready to use.

This is the fastest way to create new forms, just describe your needs in plain language and let AI handle the JSON Schema details.

✨ Recommended AI Models

Use Claude Sonnet 4.5 or Claude Opus 4.5 for best results. These models understand JSON Schema, produce clean YAML, and more often deliver perfect form configs on the first try: https://claude.ai

How to Use It

Step 1: Trigger the Form Factory

matches:
  - trigger: ':factory'
    replace: '{{output}}'
    force_mode: clipboard
    vars:
      - name: output
        type: script
        params:
          args:
            - C:/Program Files/Espanso Dynamic Forms/EDF.exe
            - --form-config
            - \{\{env.EDF_FORMS}}/factory.yml

Step 2: Fill in the Form

The only required field is Description. The more details you provide, the better the AI can generate a useful config. All other fields are optional but help refine the output.

Step 3: Submit and Get the Prompt

The form generates a detailed prompt with all your requirements and examples from the library for context.

Step 4: Paste into AI Assistant

Paste the prompt into your AI assistant. It will generate a complete YAML configuration.

Step 5: Save and Use

Copy the AI's output to a .yml file and reference it in your Espanso trigger.

Form Factory Options

Overview Tab

Field	Description
Description	Clear explanation of what the form should do
Details	Additional context, constraints, or special requirements
Complexity	Simple (few fields), Moderate (some logic), Complex (many features)
Layout	Single-page, Multi-tab, or Stepper
Max Tabs	For multi-tab/stepper, how many tabs maximum
Styling Framework	CSS framework preference (e.g., Vuetify 3)
Naming Convention	Variable naming style (camelCase, snake_case, etc.)
Output Format	Generate YAML or JSON config
Existing Config	Upload or paste an existing config to modify

Schema Tab

Field	Description
Schema	Describe what fields your form needs
UI Schema	Describe layout and styling preferences
Defaults	Describe default values for fields
Include Rules	Whether to add conditional visibility
Rules	Specific conditional visibility requirements

Output Tab

Field	Description
Template	Describe how the output should be formatted
Template Requirements	Specific formatting rules (Markdown, Liquid filters, etc.)

Other Tab

Field	Description
Example Files	Upload existing configs as reference for the AI
Emit Comments	Include explanatory comments in generated config
Include i18n	Generate translation support
Supported Languages	Which languages to include in i18n

Example: Creating a Bug Report Form

Description:

Collect bug reports from users with title, severity, steps to reproduce, 
expected behavior, and actual behavior.

Details:

This form is for internal QA team to submit bugs to developers.
Include a file upload for screenshots.

Complexity: Moderate

Layout: Multi-tab (2 tabs: "Bug Details" and "Reproduction Steps")

Template:

Generate a GitHub issue format with markdown headers and code blocks for steps.

The AI will generate a complete configuration with:

• Required title and severity fields
• Textarea fields for steps, expected, and actual behavior
• File upload for screenshots
• Two-tab layout
• Markdown-formatted output

Tips for Better Results

Be Specific

❌ "A form for notes" ✅ "A form to capture meeting notes with attendees list, action items, and due dates"

Describe Field Types

❌ "Add options for priority" ✅ "Add a radio button group for priority with options: Critical, High, Medium, Low"

Specify Output Format

❌ "Output the data" ✅ "Output as a Markdown document with headers for each section, bullet lists for items"

Include Examples

Upload similar form configs from the library to give the AI context on syntax and style.

Use Complexity Appropriately

• Simple: 1-5 basic fields, no conditional logic
• Moderate: 5-15 fields, some conditional visibility, tabs
• Complex: Many fields, nested objects, arrays, i18n, complex templates

Included Example Files

The Form Factory pre-loads these example configs for the AI to reference:

• reply.yml — Tabs, arrays, conditional output
• code.yml — Complex multi-tab, many field types
• file.yml — File uploads, i18n
• date.yml — Date picker, Liquid filters
• checkbox.yml — Checkbox arrays

Form Configuration Reference

The complete factory.yml configuration is 431 lines. Key sections:

Dynamic Tab Limit

The "Max Tabs" slider only appears for multi-tab layouts:

- type: Control
  scope: '#/properties/maxTabs'
  rule:
    effect: SHOW
    condition:
      scope: '#/properties/layout'
      schema:
        enum:
          - multi-tab
          - stepper

Conditional Text Field

The paste-config field hides when a file is uploaded:

- type: Control
  scope: '#/properties/existingConfigText'
  rule:
    effect: HIDE
    condition:
      scope: '#/properties/existingConfigFile'
      schema:
        type: object
        minProperties: 1

Template with Embedded Files

The template includes full file contents for context:

{% for file in exampleFiles %}
### Example File {{forloop.index}}: {{file.fullName}}
````{{file.extension}}
{{file.text}}
````
{% endfor %}

Customization Ideas

• Add your own example files for project-specific patterns
• Modify default template requirements for your favorite style
• Add project-specific field type presets
• Include custom validators or renderers as requirements