All this is interesting!
I was thinking about using OverText (or a variation of it) for my
comment form, displaying the inputs' labels above the inputs to save
space... I don't think such a form needs dummy values or hints about
what is expected in the input (the labels might be enough) but I agree
some more complex forms (like a registration) could.
As for the "fade" and "OverText visible on focus" debates, I agree
with Ryan and think Apple "educated" people with their iOS
implementation...
JS for UX!
Quentin • http://toki-woki.net
On 30 sept. 2010, at 18:34, Aaron Newton <[email protected]> wrote:
Note that I don't really recommend overtext for labeling. It's
better for hint text. For an email input, I'd still have a label
that read "email:" and the over text hint would be "[email protected]" or
whatever. The exception to this rule is search inputs and the like
where there's one input and it's not about data entry so much.
On Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 7:49 AM, Ryan Florence
<[email protected]> wrote:
There's this:
http://github.com/cpojer/mootools-form-placeholder
Pros: Uses native placeholder support when available
Cons: It alters the value of a form field for browser's that don't
support placeholder. If the script fails (cpojer assures us that he
doesn't write code that fails) then there's a chance you'll get bad
data.
That's why we have OverText.
Pros: It doesn't alter the value of a field and you can style it
however you want (like http://me.com)
Cons: I dunno, some say it's nutty.
As for the whole "bad interface" argument of fading out the text,
but keeping it visible until the user types, I have a few thoughts
about that.
1) Apple does it on me.com and it works great.
2) The iPhone and iPad do it with nearly all form fields and iOS is
arguably the most usable OS ever
3) If the placeholder disappears and you provide no other label,
then tabbing through a form is a horrible user experience. You get
to the next field and have no idea what you should put in it. I
know, I built software that did this and cursed the day a thousand
times over. The label should be visible when the field has focus
For search fields? Placeholders are great, for a full blown form,
you have to have the label visible when the user is focused, so
either ditch the whole placeholder idea or implement it the way
Apple has. Focus fades the label, typing removes it.
> Starting with full opacity text does not tell me it will go away.
Fading
> the text out but leaving it on onFocus makes me want to delete it
myself -
> cannot anticipate you will do that for me.
Admittedly, I did this the first time at me.com. But after one use,
I understood how it worked. Everybody I know with mobile me seem to
log in just fine.
On Sep 30, 2010, at 6:51 AM, Dimitar Christoff wrote:
>> You're right, I will consider this!
>> Thanks.
>>
>> I will try to post what I came up with...
>
> here's what I came up with when tackling this before...
>
> http://jsfiddle.net/hFtNd/1/light/
>
> and i forgot to mention, this is not that i don't like and
appreciate
> the complexity of what you have done - and i do believe people do
learn
> and adapt for the most part.
>
> it was simply a case of missing the forset for the tree, that's
all :)
>
> Best regards
> --
> Dimitar Christoff <[email protected]>
>
> blog: http://fragged.org/ twitter: @D_mitar
>
