java/java script/ya ain't missing much

[Octavian Rasnita]

Hi all,

I am subscribed to some mailing lists for web server programming, and each
time they ask for some automation with Javascript, I remember them promptly
that their form will be innaccessible for the blind or for the people using
browsers like Linx.

However, I definitely need to use Javascript in some forms because:
1. I can put a link that takes the visitor to the previous visited page with
Javascript, but I can't put that with HTML only.
Do you know how can I use HTML only to link the visitor to the previous
page?
Or I should not put such a link because a very small percent of users use
Linx.
2. I need to validate some forms before sending them to the server.
This job is easier to do on the server, but I don't want to let the user
submit a form, then let them see that something is wrong. The trip to the
server will take a lot of time and some people (including me) have slow
connections.
3. There are some task that need to run only on the client machine without a
trip to the server.
For example, I've made a sheet for calculating the cheapest price among all
mobile  phone companies operators in my country.
The visitors should type  how much they speak, where, on which networks, how
much off peak, etc, and after that, they see a graphic and text values of
the costs for all tarrif plans of all operators.
On the server, this is easier to do, but after each "OK" button, the visitor
need to wait and I don't want this.

Linux is a great OS, and I like that it can be set as I want (not just like
Windows) but all the settings are made in a text file.
This is OK, but what I don't understand is why there isn't any good text
editor, like in Windows. Like TextPad, for example.

It is the same thing with Lynx.
All the people tell that in Lynx you can do anything you want, but even the
most known browser under Linux, doesn't support javascript.
Unbelievable!

If a browser like Internet Explorer under Windows supports Javascript, this
is not a problem if you don't like it. You can simply disable javascript or
VB script or other things you may not want.
But most people want Javascript because it is very helpful.

Only bad designed web sites are inaccessible for us, because of javascript
only links that pop up menus, from where you can choose the next link, but
well designed ones also have normal links that can be used but with more
clicks.

So my opinion is yes, Lynx is a poor designed web browser, and unfortunately
I don't know a better one under Linux.


Teddy,
orasnita at home.ro

----- Original Message -----
From: "Adam Myrow" <myrow at eskimo.com>
To: <speakup at braille.uwo.ca>
Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2002 1:34 AM
Subject: Re: java/java script/ya ain't missing much


The theory of the Javascript submit button (at least as I understand it,)
is that it makes the client do  data verification rather than the server.
For example, if you are making an online purchase, and you enter 1 too
many digits in your credit card number, the client would catch this before
the data got uploaded to the server and sent to a bank and then returned
as invalid.  I still think that it's just laziness.  I remember in college
that I had a professor who used Java script on his web page that was
needed for class.  This was back in the days of IE3 and Netscape 3.01.  As
you can imagine, it was real hard to use.  Almost impossible, in fact.
Even when I explained it to him, he flat refused to replace the
Javascript.

Now, as for those Javascript links, I think the only thing they do is
serve you those annoying popup adds.  I can't stand how so many sites with
Real Audio content happily use those things.  Oh, speaking of Real media,
did anybody notice how they switched to that "Real One" player, abandoned
Linux and Windows 95, and from what I hear, the new player is
inaccessible.  Shows how much they care about their users!  I think
somebody needs to come up with a GPL streaming format.  Every audio/video
streaming format I know of is proprietary.



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