Here's another solution: Have one global help button or link, and use
JavaScript to keep track of the user's current position in the form. E.g.:
1. For each form field, add something like:
onfocus="setCurrentField(this)"
2. Add a global help link (or access key, or whatever):
<p><a href="help.html" onclick="return
!contextSensitiveHelp(this.href)">Form Help</a></p>
3. Use JavaScript to intercept the help link and add a section (or open a popup
or floating help layer):
function contextSensitiveHelp(url) {
window.location = url + '#' + currentField.id;
currentField.focus();
return true;
}
Here's a working example:
http://www.virtualgeoff.com/junkyard/forms/contextSensitiveHelp.html
cheers,
Geoff
--------------------------------
Geoff Pack
Developer
ABC New Media & Digital Services
ph +61 2 8333 2110
--------------------------------
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Sent: Tuesday, 14 March 2006 6:31 AM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Re: [WSG] Usability issue with form help
>
>
> Thanks for your replies to date. To give you a deeper
> understanding of the
> situation:
>
> - despite quite skilled users, double tabbing hundreds and
> hundreds of times
> a day is seen as a efficiency issue too (x 5days x 45weeks)
> - the sample form
> (http://users.bigpond.net.au/leenath/form/forms-example.htm)
> is nothing like
> our applications (obviously in real life first name, last
> name etc. would
> not require any help). They are complex! It's the nature of
> our business.
> Therefore, despite a very clear label, users often need to be
> reminded of
> the type of data that is required in a response. Sometimes policy and
> legislation requirements are included in the help, making
> them lengthy at
> times (so samples of input or "always there" help
> information/tips is not
> appropriate).
>
> Thanks for your replies to date. I'll go through them all in
> more detail
> tonight.
>
> -------------------------------
> ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
>
> Hi all,
>
> I'm hoping to get some feedback from people regarding a solution to a
> usability issue. I work for a large organisation and we have very
> large/detailed processing required. Because the applications
> we develop are
> very detailed and change dynamically depending upon the current input,
> context sensitive help becomes very important.
>
> I have quickly thrown together an example of what Im talk about...
>
> http://users.bigpond.net.au/leenath/form/forms-example.htm
>
> The issue we face is that users are frustrated with having to
> tab through
> the help icons all the time. Users get into the habbit of
> tabbing twice (to
> go past the help and get to the next input field), but
> sometimes a help item
> wont exist, meaning the user accidentally tabs past the next
> input feild.
> Users say they want the help, because it comes in handy frequently,
> especially as the organisation is so huge and complex that
> they could never
> remember exactly what every input feild is about.
>
> So, here is what feeback Im looking for - How can we keep
> context sensitive
> help available for each input feild that requires it but
> potentially ignore
> it in a tabbing sequence? However, help must also be
> accessible (think about
> screen readers) and available via keyboard if they need to
> select it. It
> seems like a catch 22 to me, but I figure someone out there may see a
> solution that I cannot.
>
> I look forward to your feedback/ideas.
>
> Cheers
>
> Nathan
>
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