In one of the apps I'm building, the user fills out a series of forms that will eventually create an AR model. What's the best way to handle the object throughout the process? I could save it at each step, though that could leave us with tons of crap objects in the db.
Another option is to just create an object without saving it, and pass it into each view. Then I would use hidden fields in the forms to pass along the already submitted info.
The final idea that I'm thinking of is to hold onto the object using the session. I could use flash to ensure they don't stay in too long.
One major consideration is that I'm not sure what all the steps are at this point, and they'll definitely be changing. Some users will have different steps than others.
The forms will be standard fare, just a bunch of strings and numbers. They will upload a picture or two.
With all that in mind, what are the pros and cons of each approach I mentioned above? Are there any other approaches that may work better?
Thanks for any advice.
Pat
