Working with Forms and Input Devices - JavaScript by Example - page 337

A summary of the steps in producing a form follows:

1. START: Start the form with the HTML <form> tag.
2. ACTION: The action attribute of the <form> tag is the URL of the server-side
(CGI) script that will process the data input from the form.
3. METHOD: Provide a method on how to process the data input. The default is
the get method.
4. CREATE: Create the form with buttons, boxes, and whatever looks attractive
using HTML tags and fields.
5. SUBMIT: Create a submit button so that the form can be processed. This will
launch the PHP, ASP.NET, or CGI script listed in the action attribute.
6. END: End the form with the </form> tag.

Table 11.4 shows the various form input types.

Table 11.4 HTML Form Controls

Input Type Attribute Description

button name, id Creates a generic button for user input. It has no default

action.

text name, id, size, maxlength Creates a textbox for user input. size specifies the size of

the textbox. maxlength specifies the maximum number of
characters allowed.

textarea name, id, size,

rows, cols

Creates a text area that can take input spanning multiple
lines. rows and cols specify the size of the box.

password name, id, value Like textbox but input is hidden. Asterisks appear in the

box to replace characters typed.

checkbox name, id, value Displays a square box that can be checked. Creates

name/value pairs from user input. Multiple boxes can be
checked.

radio name, id, value Like checkboxes, except only one button (or circle) can be

checked.

select name, id, option,

size, multiple

Provides popup menus and scrollable lists. Only one can be
selected. Attribute multiple creates a visibly scrollable list.
A size of 1 creates a popup menu with only one visible box.

file name, id Specifies files to be uploaded to the server. MIME type must

be multipart/form-data.

hidden name, id, value Provides name/value pair without displaying an object on

the screen.

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