1. Working with Forms

2. How Forms Work

3. Forms let you build interactive Web pages that collect information from a user and process it on the Web server The HTML form is the interface for the user to enter data The data is processed by applications that reside on the Web server

5. Using CGI Scripts The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is the communications “bridge” between the Internet and the server Using programs called scripts, CGI can collect data sent by a user via the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and transfer it to a variety of data processing programs including spreadsheets, databases, or other software running on the server

7. Using CGI Scripts (continued) The data processing software can then work with the data and send a response back to CGI, and then onto the user The user enters data via an HTML form

8. Understanding Form Syntax

9. Forms Syntax The following basic form elements are commonly supported by the major browsers: – Other newly defined elements exist, but to begin, we’ll concentrate on the above main elements.

10. Using the element The element is the container for creating a form A variety of attributes describe how the form data will be handled

12. Using the element (continued) The following code shows a typical element: <form action=“http://www.website.com/ order-form.html” method=”get” enctype=“plain/text”>

13. Using the mailto Action The mailto action accesses the user’s own e- mail program and uses it to mail form information to a specified e-mail address. –Bypasses the need for server-based programs. The syntax is as follows: … Where e-mail_address is the e-mail address of the recipient in the form.

14. Creating Input Objects

15. The element defines many of the form input object types The type attribute specifies the type of input object

16. Input object types

17. Creating Text Boxes The text box is the most commonly used form element

19. Creating Check Boxes Check boxes are an on/off toggle that the user can select Smallmouth Bass

21. Creating Radio Buttons Radio buttons are like check boxes, but only one selection is allowed Yes

23. Creating Submit & Reset Buttons The submit and reset buttons let the user choose whether to send the form data or start over

25. Creating a Custom Event Button Custom event buttons activate a function in some associated program or script Click the calculate button to total your order:

27. Creating an Image for the Submit Button You can choose an image file and use it instead of the default submit button

29. Letting the User Submit a File Users can select a file on their own computer and send it to the server Use the browse button to select your file:

31. Creating a Password Entry Field The password input box works like the text input, but the entered text is hidden by asterisks password:

33. Using the Element The element lets you create a list box or scrollable list of selectable options Canoe Jon Boat Kayak Bass Boat Family Boat

35. Using the Element (continued) You can choose to let the user pick multiple values from the list by adding the multiple attribute Potato Chips Popcorn Peanuts Pretzels Nachos Pizza Fries

37. Using the Element (continued) You group and label sets of list options with the element and label attribute Potato Chips Popcorn Peanuts Pretzels

39. Using the Element The element lets you create a larger text area for user input Briefly tell us your favorite fish story: Enter your story here...

41. Creating Input Groupings You can use the and elements to create groupings of different types of input elements

42. Creating Input Groupings (continued) Select the species you prefer to fish: Smallmouth Bass Largemouth Bass Pike

44. Building Forms within Tables

45. Placing forms within a table can enhance the layout and legibility of the form

48. Summary You will need to work with some type of server-based software program to process the data from your form You have a variety of form elements to choose from when building a form –Use the correct type of form element for the type of data you are gathering –For example, use check boxes for multiple-choice questions; for a long list of choices, use a select list

49. Summary (continued) The and elements let you create more visually appealing forms that have logical groupings of input elements with a title You can control the ragged look of forms by placing them within tables to control the alignment of input elements