I have an application in written in VFP which my client is thinking about moving onto an Intranet. I would like some advice on the best approach to take.

Appologies in advance - It's a bit long-winded.

The application works something like a spreadsheet. The user is able to enter data into 'cells' (actually textboxes) on around 80 different forms. Each 'cell' has a unique identifier. Some 'cells' are for output only and these contain formula constructed from the unique cell identifiers (e.g. "T1C1R1 + T1C1R2 + T1C1R3 - T51C3R5". Some formula have 100+ components). An additional complication is that formula components can come from any of the 80 different forms, not just the one being entered.

Currently, the output cells update as data is being enetered (like in a spreadsheet) and it is this behaviour that I feel will be a problem when the app is moved to an Intranet.

I can see two ways to emulate this behaviour from a browser:

1) User enters input data to an HTML form. Output fields do not update automatically. User submits form. The server receives the data and .ASP code or a Fox ISAPI server is used to perform the calculations. Form is returned to the browser showing complete calculations.

This approach is simplest for the browser - Data transfer to/from the client is minimised - Server processing could/would be high.

2) The HTML form contains all the necessary data and formula necessary to re-calculate output cells in real-time. Client-side scripting is used to update each output whenever one if its input components (on the current form) is updated. Completed data - with all calculations done is returned each time to the server.

This approach would move much of the calculation processing to the browser, but I think it would make the HTML/Client-script-code being sent to the browser very large (50-100k) for a complex form. Server processing would be simpler for storing results, however it would still be qute a complex task to gather and send all the calculation components to the browser initially.

Any comments, suggestions for alternative solutions appreciated.