Government Forms

[This was originally posted at http://timstall.dotnetdevelopersjournal.com/government_forms.htm]

I recently had to submit a form to the government, and it lived up to its bureaucratic stereotype:

1. I needed to print out a physical hard-copy, and make a duplicate.
2. Unclear directions
3. No validation to ensure that I filled it out correctly.
4. I mailed the form, waited 4 weeks (no way to see what the status was)
5. I get the form back in the mail, with a letter saying that I missed one line on one of the duplicates, and please re-submit the whole thing.
6. I sent the form back in the mail... waiting.

It seems like this was how most processes used to be, and it makes me appreciate how convenient and fast web applications are today - online version, dynamic help, validate before you submit, and instant results.