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From: Tim Harshbarger
Date: Sun, Aug 11 2002 1:14AM
Subject: RE: Labelling form elements for date
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Jed,

It is possible to associate a single label with all 3 pull-downs by giving
the 3 pull-downs the same exact ID.

If we are talking about screen reader access, another method is to label the
3 pull-downs with the TITLE attribute.

You could also associate 3 separate labels with the 3 different pull-downs,
but that doesn't sound like a solution you would be favouring.

There are a couple of disadvantages to using a single label for multiple
pull-downs. First, clicking on a label (depending on the browser) usually
causes the focus to be moved to the associated control. However, with 3
associated pull-downs, the focus will always move to the last control in the
tab order. The second problem has to do with screen readers that can handle
the LABEL tag. At best, you will end up with a screen reader reading the
same label for every single associated control. How do you know which
pull-down you are focused on?

The problem with using the TITLE attributes is that there is no visible
label associated with the controls unless your browser displays a tool tip
with the contents of the TITLE attribute in it whenever the mouse is over
the control. However, unlike the single LABEL solution, you can have 3
separate labels for the pull-downs without taking up any screen real estate.

Thanks,
Tim
Tim Harshbarger
Disability Support
State Farm Insurance Companies
Phone: (309) 766-0154
E-mail: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =

From: Tom Gilder
Date: Tue, Jun 25 2002 1:47PM
Subject: Re: Labelling form elements for date
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On Tuesday, June 25, 2002, 9:33:52 PM, you wrote:
> It is possible to associate a single label with all 3 pull-downs by giving
> the 3 pull-downs the same exact ID.

However, that's illegal - all ID's must be unique within a document.

I'd just use 3 labels, one for each input.

--
Tom Gilder
http://tom.me.uk/


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From: Tim Harshbarger
Date: Sun, Aug 11 2002 12:36PM
Subject: RE: Labelling form elements for date
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Yes, it is not valid.

Actually, in situations like dates, times, and phone numbers, I usually push
for a single text box. Users with disabilities seem to do better with this
approach than using multiple fields. The error rates seem less and the
field completion time seems faster.

Here is a question. Would people find any value in a usability study that
looked at different form controls in certain contexts to compare error rates
and speed of entry? Are there other kinds of usability/accessibility tests
that would be helpful to those of us interested in accessible design
principles?

Tim

From: Mary Utt
Date: Wed, Jun 26 2002 5:36AM
Subject: RE: Labelling form elements for date
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> Actually, in situations like dates, times, and phone numbers, I usually
push
> for a single text box. Users with disabilities seem to do better with
this
> approach than using multiple fields. The error rates seem less and the
field
> completion time seems faster.

This is very interesting: my observations (not to be confused with a study)
of non-disabled users is that text fields for dates and times are confusing,
even when examples are included in the page text and even when the system
allows various common input formats.

> Here is a question. Would people find any value in a usability study that
> looked at different form controls in certain contexts to compare error
rates
> and speed of entry? Are there other kinds of usability/accessibility
tests
> that would be helpful to those of us interested in accessible design
> principles?

Absolutely. These questions keep popping up: dates, times, phone numbers,
and probably a few other things are very common in forms for both web sites
and web apps. It would be grand (for developers and users) to have
guidelines
grounded in real usage information. For example, in this case, it would be
especially interesting to know if, for dates, text fields are more usable
for
disabled users and select boxes are more usable for non-disabled users.

Mary Utt
SiteScape, Inc.
Maynard, MA USA


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