CGI question on input type=text form elements

[Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams]

On Thu, 11 Oct 2001, DeepBlue wrote:

>
> "Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams" <ignacio at openservices.net> wrote in message
> news:mailman.1002815363.21257.python-list at python.org...
> > On Thu, 11 Oct 2001, DeepBlue wrote:
> >
> > > I am running into a strange problem with a form while using CGI module
> in
> > > Python.
> > > Let us say I have the following form:
> > > <form>
> > > <input type="text" name="text_1">
> > > <input type="submit" name="submit" value="test">
> > > </form>
> > >
> > > Now, let us say that test_form=cgi.FieldStorage()
> > > If the above form is submitted without typing anything in the text field
> one
> > > expects test_form.keys() to generate:
> > > ['submit']
> > >
> > > But i am getting:
> > > ['text_1', 'submit']
> > > Which is unexpected, and in my case, undesirable.  What am I doing
> wrong?
> >
> > You are assuming that the browser won't pass the contents of text_1 if it
> is
> > empty. Obviously this isn't true. You need to fine-tune your code to deal
> with
> > the case when it is empty.
> >
> This is only happening when the form is enclosed in a table.  When the form
> is not, the keys do not include empty text input elements.

Well then you have two options:

1) Let the Python script know when the form is in a table, or

2) Deal with cases when the field is present but empty

Not only is option 2 probably easier, but it's also the "correct" thing to do,
because other browsers may behave in a different manner, returning the empty
field whether or not the input is in a table.

-- 
Ignacio Vazquez-Abrams  <ignacio at openservices.net>