[Sigia-l] "clear" button on web forms

[Listera]

Matthew deStwolinski:

> 1. uses the tool often enough to be familiar with the persistence option

Yes, as I mentioned previously, this is very useful in repetitive data-entry
situations. (The apps I created using this method were all intranet apps,
except for one.) The point is, if you are in fact entering data into the
same form repeatedly, you are (or you will soon be) very familiar with the
tool.

(As an historical point of record, I first devised this method when I had to
redesign a mainframe accounting app for an ad agency. Originally, the screen
had an either/or choice: clear|duplicate *all* fields. Data-entry people
were screaming about the stupidity of that limitation, most had to duplicate
everything *and then* erase those they didn't want, which I guess was
marginally better than starting from scratch. Except I found that
*automatically* persistent fields had a high rate of mistakes because
data-entry people would leave them unchanged, from the previous form, even
when they had to. Visually it looked completed, so they moved on. It was
their frustration that compelled me to devise it, not some far-fetched
theory of pain in clicking a checkbox. :-)

----
Ziya

When you point a finger at a problem, fools will point to the finger.