Customize the way CCK Node Reference fields are displayed in Drupal

Question

Node reference fields in Drupal are displayed as lists by default. Is there a way to change that?

I'd like to output them as JSON so I can create a fancy JavaScript visualization.

Answer 1

You can modify it in 2 ways: via custom module with function hook_form_alter or via theming (preprocessing form or templating form).
http://api.drupal.org/api/function/hook_form_alter/6
http://www.lullabot.com/articles/modifying-forms-drupal-5-and-6

For AHAH: http://api.drupal.org/api/drupal/developer--topics--forms_api_reference.html/6#ahah
Also, nodereference already have little ahah: "autocomplete" in field editing of custom node type.

Answer 2

http://drupal.org/project/contemplate