5.7 *report

[Bruce Easton]

On 12/20/13 1:50 PM, Mike Schwartz wrote:
>> While I'm on the topic of web pages, am I the only one who resents having
> to
>> scroll through a column with a mouse instead of just typing the two
>> characters of my state?
>>
>> --
>> JP
>       That urks me, too.  In many web sites that have a state field, you can
> at least type the first letter of your state, but you still have to use the
> mouse, unless your state is the first one that starts with any given letter.
> When I type "W", "WA" pops up, so I still have to use the mouse to select
> "WI".  If I try to type "W" then "I", the popup box jumps to "IA".
>
>        For example, jump to the state field on this website:
>
> https://www.tigerdirect.com/secure/subscribe2.asp?cm_sp=Masthead-_-NewCustom
> er-_-NA
>
>        "W" takes me to "Washington", but if I then type "I" it takes me down
> to "International".   I can avoid using my mouse if I type "W" and then down
> arrow twice, to get past West Virginia.
>
> Mike Schwartz
>
>
Yes.  I code for web apps for this issue in different ways depending on 
the circumstances.  Some clients want to track a limited set of states 
within which they do business.  So I have found it to be more user 
friendly to maybe build a limited state file, but rather than supply a 
select list, I will allow entry of the two-letter code, usually though 
with accompanying Ajax/JSON to apply either a custom edit or a lookup to 
said limited state file upon leaving the field. The client in this case 
usually knows all the codes for the states that they do business in.  On 
the other hand, if it's a completely generic state database that 
includes territories and APO? zones, where the client or their customers 
are all over the place, then they tend to like the pull-down. (It seems 
odd because it's a bigger list - it's just that they are not likely to 
know the states codes they may need to enter).

One thing to consider is if the client is, as a regular practice, 
importing data from elsewhere that includes state field(s).  If the data 
is regularly not trustworthy and preserving existing data is of ultimate 
importance, then obviously you want to bring it in and display it as-is 
in some way without the chance that an edit will blank the field or that 
a simple select list will just show a bad value as blank.  In this case, 
I almost always just show the data value as-is in a text type form field.

Bruce