RE: Form labeling and user agent support

If a user is using a keyboard only or voice software
only, such as Dragon I think that the inconsistent
behaviour of the label tag is a big usability issue.

From *this* perspective I believe it is better to not
use the label tag on input boxes and check boxes.

As an experiment try setting up a check box with the
label tag, with more than one option and see if you
can select and deselect the boxes using the keboard
only. Its very hard and unintuitive.

I don't know what impact it would have on a screen
reader user to have say a form with all of the
standard input boxes marked up with the label tag and 
the check boxes and radio buttons marked up without
the label tag. That may be very confusing.

I will get some of our user testers to do some
usability testing on it.

Cheers
Graham Oliver


=====
'Making on-line information accessible'
Phone: 025-919-724

____________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.co.uk address at http://mail.yahoo.co.uk
or your free @yahoo.ie address at http://mail.yahoo.ie

Received on Friday, 4 May 2001 21:37:32 UTC