Form Attributes

Attributes to Use with the <form> tag

Attribute	Purpose and Syntax	Values
method	Determines how the information from the form will be sent to the server. <form method="GET" or "POST">	You have two choices for this attribute, POST or GET. The GET method adds the information provided by the user to the actual web page URL. The CGI script then extracts this data from the appended URL. The advantage of this method is that you can bookmark the URL and save the data with it. The disadvantage is the amount of data you can send and the fact that the data is clearly visible in the address bar. This method is not suitable for sensitive data. The POST method sends a data file to the server. The data file that is sent contains a name or label and a value for each piece of information that the user enters. The name of a data field must match the name in the CGI script so keep that in mind when creating forms. The advantage of the POST method is that the data is not clearly visible and you are not limited in the amount of data you can send.
action	Indicates which file on the server will handle the information sent from the form, e.g., <form action="filename.php">	If the web page containing the form is located on the server running the CGI script then you would include the path to that file, e.g. scripts/php/filename.php If the action script is located on another server then you would use the absolute path to the file: http://www.techdodge.com/scripts/php/filename.php.

Attributes to Use with the <fieldset> tag
Boxes in sections of a form when you want to group several form items together. Good to use when you have a long form with many sections. There are no attributes associated with this tag but the <legend> tag is used to place text in the border of the fieldset.

<fieldset>
<legend align="left">Please complete this section of the form first</legend>
Your form elements would go here.
</fieldset>

Attributes to Use with the <legend> tag

Attributes to Use with the <input> Tag.
Used to create Text boxes, Password boxes, Radio Buttons and Checkboxes.

Attribute	Purpose and Syntax	Values
type	Produces a text box for entering one line of text, e.g., <input type="text">	text - produces a single line text box password - same as text box but the letters are hidden radio - produces radio buttons of which only one can be selected at a time. checkbox - produces a checkbox which allows multiple selections
name	This is the label that is passed to the CGI script and identifies what information is contained in the input value, e.g., <input type="text" name="title">	Here are some examples of names that you might use, title, age, address. Each of these names would then have a matching value that is provided by the user of the form.
size	Sets the size of the text box, e.g., <input size="30">	Size here is measured in characters.
maxlength	Defines the maximum number of characters allowed in the field, e.g., <input maxlength="45">	Maximum number of characters allowed in this field.
name (when used with radio buttons)	Creates a set of radio buttons as long as they have the same name value, e.g., <input type="radio" name="age">	Every radio button with the same name value (age in this example) would be part of a radio set. Only one radio button from a radio set can be selected at a time.
value (used with radio buttons and check boxes)	Tells the form what information to send to the server when that button is selected, e.g., <input type="radio" name="age" value="40">	If this radio button is selected send an age value of 40 to the server. Each radio button should have its own unique value. The same is true of checkboxes.
checked (used with radio buttons and check boxes)	When the form page comes up this radio button or check box will already be checked, e.g., <input type="radio" checked="checked"> e.g., <input type="checkbox" checked="checked">	Allows you to pre select what buttons or boxes are checked but the user can change these. Acts as a default value.
submit	Used to send the form data to the server. e.g., <input type="submit" value="Send Info">	The value for this attribute is the text that will appear on the button, in this case "Send Info".
reset	e.g., <input type="reset">	Clears the form of all current data

Attributes to Use with the <textarea> Tag.
Creates a multiple line text area.

Attribute	Purpose and Syntax	Values
name	This is the label that is passed to the CGI script and identifies what information is contained in the input value, e.g., <textarea name="comments">	Here are some examples of names that you might use, description, comments, feed back.. Each of these names would then have a matching value that is provided by the user of the form.
rows	Determines the height of the text area. e.g., <textarea rows="8">	The number entered here is the height of the text area in rows. The default is 4.
cols	Determines the width of the text area. e.g., <textarea rows="35">	The number entered here is the width of the text area in characters. The default is 40.
wrap	Automatically wraps the text within the margins of the text area. e.g., <textarea wrap>	This is simply and on or off switch. IE will automatically wrap text, Netscape will not.

Attributes to Use with the <select> Tag.
Used to create Menu lists

Attributes to Use with the <option> Tag.
This tag is used with the <select> tag to create the individual items in the pull down menu or list box.