Creating HTML Forms – Best Practices and Tools

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HTML has been around from quite some time now and the web development company has a multitude of reasons to leverage it for different types of web development tasks. And building forms and form labels has been something that has emerged as one of the most sought-after uses of the platform.

It is not a hidden fact that creating the HTML forms can turn into a long and unwieldy task for some. There is surely a lot of setup to the whole exercise. But there are also various functions for making the job a tad too easier for you:

addTextInput( string $label, string $name [, string $value = ’’, array $attributes = array(), string $addtext = ’’] )
 addPassword( string $label, string $name [, string $value = ’’, array $attributes = array(), string $addtext = ’’] )
 addUpload( string $label, string $name [, string $value = ’’, array $attributes = array(), string $addtext = ’’] )
 addHiddenInput( string $label [, string $name = ’’] )
 addTextarea( string $label, string $name [, string $value = ’’, array $attributes = array(), string $addtext = ’’, int $rows = 4, int $cols = 20] )
 addSelectList( string $label, string $name [, array $option_list = array(), array $attributes = array()] )
 addRadioButton( string $label, string $name [, array $option_list = array(), array $attributes = array()] )
 addCheckboxes( string $label, string $name [, array $option_list = array(), array $attributes = array()] )

Now, creating the HTML forms involves a number of recommendable practices. Let’s first begin with discussing a few of them:

It’s Good to Name the Inputs

When you are inputting form data, it is advised that the data items have their own names:

    Street Name
City
Postal Code

When Enclosing Similar Fields, Make use of Fieldsets
Now, at times there are way too many fields for the user to fill out individually, and this means a lot of setup. Thus, for the sake of user friendliness, it is better to keep a solid track of the inputs. And the same can be done effortlessly using the fieldsets.

     Street Name
City
Postal Code

 

    Street Name
City
Postal Code

Don’t Forget to Validate

Yes, it can sometimes get taxing but it is always a great practice to validate the input on both – on the client as as well as on the server system. When you do the same on browser, you are able to notify the users beforehand about any possible mistakes while filling out the form:

Image :

When Categorizing, Do Use Optgroup
Categorizing is highly recommended when you have several options at your behest and you wish to organize them in a very structured manner. It obviously can get very difficult otherwise. And thus, grouping these options in optgroups comes extremely handy and gives a sense of structure to the whole arrangement.
In its simplest form is the element that is used to indent the options and also place them under titles.

Delhi
Mumbai
Bangalore

Lahore
Karachi

So, the above four practices are among the various others that are recommended by experts.
Apart from afore-mentioned practices, you also have a host of HTML form label resources that come extremely handy while creating user friendly forms.

Form Builder

Easily among the very best out there, Form Builder is sought by web developers across all stratas. This software can help you build some fully functional and powerful forms without a lot of fuss. Also, using the Form Builder tool is a fun way of building forms since it keeps things pretty much interactive. Some of the highlights of this tool are the straightforward drag-n-drop GUI, designs with varieties like minimal and metro, themes based on Bootstrap, CSS styles, and so on. One of the features that further makes Form Builder so high in demand is the fact that it hardly requires one to know a lot of coding to use it. Also, it has strong anti spam properties that come real handy.

Netsa – Contact Upload Zip Mail

Creating HTML forms with Netsa is a breeze. It can be used to create the most unique and eye catchy forms and the software is available at a very nominal price too. You can auto configure the fields and also take the step to update the jQuery contact form.

Ether Forms Builder WordPress Plugin

This one leverages a WordPress slider to build forms that are highly interactive and help in just about every detailing that you want. You can use the plugin to create the most layered forms with utmost ease. This is a powerful tool that gives you wherewithal to create forms that despite being very layered also happen to be extremely user friendly. The form fields are elaborately detailed and developers find it easy to initiate the overall process. You also get to use the shortcodes. The empty label and the form entry values are fixed. As an admin of your WordPress website, you also get to view the form entries in the most lucid manner.

HTML is a pricelessly important tool for a slew of web development exercises. All you need to know is the right approach and the set of suitable tools, and your web development endeavor can take steps in the right direction.

Author Bio :- Ben Wilson is a WordPress web developer who helped many organization in converting PSD file to WordPress friendly by providing good practical as well as coding approaches.