This technique relates to the following sections of the guidelines:
Provide additional Navigation aids
The <link> element allows the web author to specify other delivery units associated with the current delivery unit. For example, if the current delivery unit
represents the chapters in a book, the link element can be used to reference the table of contents, index, and other chapters in the book. Some user
agents provide an option to display the additional content referenced by the link element but many user agents do not. Using scripting it is
possible to extract and display the link elements on the page and allow the user to navigate to those links. This technique demonstrates how JavaScript
can be used to extract the link description and destination from the link elements and display them in a
combo box. The user can then view the list of links via the combo box and quickly navigate to one of the destinations. @@needs work
Technology Requirements
| Technology | Relies Upon | Usable without | Type @@needs better description | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HTML | yes | no | not applicable | Use HTML technique #9.13 |
| Scripting | yes | yes | Sufficient | If JavaScript is not available the code in this example will not run. The combo box will not be created but the page will continue to operate but the additional information provided by the link elements will only be available in the standard manner. |
| CSS | no | no | not applicable |
The following example is from the A List Apart web site.
Dynamically Conjuring Drop-Down Navigation
by Christian Heilmann
Wouldn’t it be great to allow our users to reach all the pages of our site via a handy drop-down menu — without expending extra effort adding one to each page?
We can, by harnessing the powers of a seemingly forgotten HTML element and adding a tap of our JavaScript wand (or a drop of a less magical PHP potion).