Camera Reservation System: Checking Availability and Form Integration

[bennhatton]

Hi Matthias,
Here are my thoughts about your case:

@InfaReQt

• Is it possible to create a formula in the “Camera’s” table that can check the linked “Reservations” table and determine if a camera is available on the “Check Date”?
• If a formula is possible, what approach would you recommend? What functions might be useful for this?

• In the “Reservations” table, I created a Check formula column with the following formula: and({Cam.Check Date}>={Start},{Cam.Check Date}<={End})
• Then, in the “Camera’s” table, I created a Status formula column with the following formula: if(lookup(findmax("Reservations","Check"),"Check"),"Not Available","Available"). It’s working but “not so dynamic” (you have to refresh the page or switch to another table and back to see the updated status when you modify the Check Date).

@InfaReQt

How can I integrate this availability check with a form, so that when a user selects a date in the form, only the available cameras for that date are shown as options?

As far as I know there is currently no built-in feature in SeaTable to manage simply what you need, because Forms can’t update depending on anything. In App forms, you can filter the displayed options for a linked column, but the condition is only static (feel free to upvote my suggestion about that even if it’s not exactly the same as in a form filling the date might no be already available).

I had once to deal with a similar problem and my solution, briefly exposed here, was to recreate a form by myself (html + JS) interacting with a n8n automation via webhook: the form page sends a request to n8n that sends back either all the reservation ranges of every cameras once or the list of every available camera each time you change the date.
This second solution may be more dynamic, even if the case of someone booking the same camera between your last date change and the actual booking is not directly covered, but you can make another check just before submitting the form. Of course, you have to be able to host your form somewhere…

Bests,
Benjamin