The SELECT element displays information from nested OPTION elements as either a scrolling list or pop-up menu in a document. Users typically make a selection from the list of items (or multiple selections from a scrolling list if the SIZE attribute is set greater than 1 and the MULTIPLE attribute is set). The VALUE attribute of the selected OPTION item is submitted as the value part of a name/value pair to the server with a form. Navigator requires that a SELECT element be placed inside a FORM element.

A single character key that brings focus to the element. The browser and operating system determine if the user must press a modifier key (e.g., Ctrl, Alt, or Command) with the access key to bring focus to the element. In IE 4/Windows, the Alt key is required, and the key is not case sensitive. This attribute does not work in IE 4/Mac.

Determines how the rectangle of the SELECT element (particularly when the SIZE attribute is set greater than 1) aligns within the context of surrounding content. See the section "Alignment Constants" earlier in this chapter for a description of the possibilities defined in both Navigator and Internet Explorer for this attribute.

Used with IE 4 data binding to associate a remote data source column name to the selectedIndex property of a SELECT element (i.e., a zero-based index value of the item currently selected in the list, as described in the SELECT object of ). As such, you can use data binding only with SELECT elements that do not specify the MULTIPLE attribute. A DATASRC attribute must also be set for the element.

Used with IE 4 data binding to specify the name of the remote ODBC data source (such as an Oracle or SQL Server database) to be associated with the element. Content from the data source is specified via the DATAFLD attribute.

The presence of this attribute disables the entire SELECT element and its nested OPTION elements. The element receives no events when it is disabled.

The presence of the MULTIPLE attribute instructs the browser to render the SELECT element as a list box and to allow users to make multiple selections from the list of options. By default, the SIZE attribute is set to the number of nested OPTION elements, but the value may be overridden with the SIZE attribute setting. Users can select contiguous items by Shift-clicking on the first and last items of the group. To make discontiguous selections, Windows users must Ctrl-click on each item; Mac users must Command-click on each item. The MULTIPLE attribute has no effect when SIZE is set to 1 to display a pop-up menu.

The name submitted as part of the element's name/value pair with the form. It is similar to the NAME attribute of INPUT elements.

Controls the number of rows of OPTION elements that appear in the SELECT element. With a value of 1, the SELECT element displays its content as a pop-up menu; with a value greater than 1, OPTION items are rendered in a list box. Browsers control the width of the element, based on the widest text associated with nested OPTION elements.

A number that indicates the sequence of this element within the tabbing order of all focusable elements in the document. Tabbing order follows a strict set of rules. Elements that have values other than zero assigned to their TABINDEX attributes are first in line when a user starts tabbing in a page. Focus starts with the element with the lowest TABINDEX value and proceeds in order to the highest value, regardless of physical location on the page or in the document. If two elements have the same TABINDEX values, the element that comes earlier in the document receives focus first. Next come all elements that either don't support the TABINDEX attribute or have the value set to zero. These elements receive focus in the order in which they appear in the document. Note that the Macintosh user interface does not provide for giving focus to elements other than text and password INPUT fields.