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proper use of labels

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From: Kevin.CTR.Spruill@faa.gov
Date: Jun 13, 2005 10:40AM

All,

Despite, or perhaps because of the recent list traffic re: use of labels -
I thought I'd throw this one on there also. Hopefully it wasn't covered
already. I repeatedly run across developers using this convention with
labels to meet Section 508 compliance:

<label for="qfind"><img src="images/clear.gif" height="1" width="1"
border="0" alt="Quick Find" /></label>
<select name="Quickfind" size="1"
style="font-family:verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size:10px;"
id="qfind">... options follow.

I always tell them that this is noncompliant, and incorrect (using the
blank images alt text) vs. using actual text. Am I being overly rigid? Or
am I correct in sticking with the W3C's
label = text [CS] ?

Thanx in advance...
___________________________________________
Kevin H. Spruill AWA/CNTR/FAA
FAA Section 508 Technical Support
202.385.8059