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Microsoft's electronic form creation and filling tools InfoPath is to be discontinued. The announcement explains that this is a bid to streamline investments, and that new investments will be made in SharePoint, Access and Word. This means that InfoPath 2013 is the final version of the desktop software to be release, but support with continue until 2023.
The announcement appears in a post on the Office Blog, where Microsoft says that "the InfoPath Forms Services technology within Office 365 will be maintained and it will function until further notice".
So what is the thinking being dropping this tool?
"Industry trends and feedback from our customers and partners make it clear that today’s businesses demand an intelligent, integrated forms experience that spans devices. We are looking to make investments that allow you to easily design, deploy, and use intelligent, integrated forms across Office clients, servers, and services -- forms that everyone can use on their PC, tablet, or phone. Our goal is to deliver tools that are flexible and agile, so you can quickly connect to your data and processes in new and exciting ways."
The advice is to continue to use InfoPath until Microsoft has a "more detailed technology roadmap and guidance to share". Some more news will be revealed at the SharePoint Conference in March, but "more details on migration scenarios and guidance" will be provide in the fourth quarter of 2014.
source:officeblog