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How to create multi-column data entry form using CSS in Asp.Net?

Answer 1

A:

There are many ways to do this - I have given you a very stripped-down solution below. There are a number of tweaks you need to do to make this cross-browser compliant, improve spacing, etc., but this should give you the basic idea as to how you can lay the elements out:

<html>
    <head>
        <style>
            body {
                font-family:arial;
                font-size: 0.8em;
            }
            div.form p {
                clear: both;
            }
            div.form label {
                float: left;
                width: 10em;
            }
            div.form input[type="text"] {
                float: left;
                width: 16em;
                font-family:arial;
                font-size: 1.0em;
            }
            div.form textarea {
                width: 52em;
                font-family:arial;
                font-size: 1.0em;
            }
        </style>
    </head>
    <body>
        <div class="form">
            <p>
                <label>Department:</label>
                <input type=text>
                <label>Project:</label>
                <input type=text id=Project name=Project>
            </p>
            <p>
                <label>Fund:</label>
                <input type=text id=FundID name=FundID>
                <label>SpeedKey:</label>
                <input type=text id=SpeedKey name=SpeedKey>
            </p>
            <p>
                <label>Program:</label>
                <input type=text id=Program name=Program>
                <label>Award:</label>
                <input type=text id=Award name=Award>
            </p>
            <p>
                <label>Project Description:</label>
            </p>
            <p>
                <textarea id=ProjectDescription name=ProjectDescription></textarea>
            </p>
        </div>
    </body>
</html>

RedFilter 2010-09-20 20:11:25

@RedFilter: that's a good example of a different way of implementing this so to have a different default tab order.

JohnB 2010-09-20 20:55:48

Answer 2

+1 A:

Example on jsFiddle

Here's a screen shot, please notice how I demonstrated the tab order with numbers:

alt text

Please note that RedFilter's answer has a different tab order, which I have demonstrated in the screenshot below:

alt text

(code below complete with ASP.NET validators)

CSS (cross browser friendly)

p
{
 margin:1em 0;
}
label
{
 float:left;
 width:5em;
 text-align:right;
 margin-right:0.5em;
}
input[type="text"]
{
 width: 10em;
}
.left-column, right-column
{
 float:left;
}
.left-column
{
 margin-right:1em;
}
.textarea-label
{
 float:none;
}
textarea
{
 height:5em;
 width:35em;
}

HTML

<div class="left-column">
  <p>
    <label for="tbDepartment">Department:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbDepartment" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valDepartment" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbDepartment">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
  <p>
    <label for="tbFund">Fund:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbFund" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valFund" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbFund">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
  <p>
  <label for="tbProgram">Program:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbProgram" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valProgram" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbProgram">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
</div>
<div class="right-column">
  <p>
    <label for="tbProject">Project:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbProject" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valProject" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbProject">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
  <p>
    <label for="tbSpeedKey">Speed Key:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbSpeedKey" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valSpeedKey" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbSpeedKey">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
  <p>
    <label for="tbAward">Award:</label>
    <asp:TextBox ID="tbAward" runat="server" MaxLength="255" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valAward" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="tbAward">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  </p>
</div>
<div>
  <p>
    <label class="textarea-label" for="taProjectDesc">Project Description:</label>
  </p>
  <p>
    <asp:TextBox ID="taProjectDesc" runat="server" TextMode="MultiLine" />
    <asp:RequiredFieldValidator ID="valProjectDesc" TabIndex="-1" runat="server" ControlToValidate="taProjectDesc">&nbsp;*</asp:RequiredFieldValidator>
  <p>
</div>

JohnB 2010-09-20 20:11:40

More than I could have asked for. Every time I feel the urge to use a table out of frustration, there turns out to be a relatively simple CSS answer. Don't know why I'm having a hard time with this stuff- Thanks.

fubart 2010-09-20 22:45:23

Answer 3

A:

Much the same as the previous answers, I offer you:

CSS:

fieldset {
    clear: both;
    padding: 0.4em;
    border: 1px solid #000;
    width: 80%;
    min-width: 600px;
    margin: 1em auto;
    overflow: hidden;

}

ul {
    width: 48%;
    border: 1px solid #ccc;
    margin: 0.5em;
    }

ul:nth-child(odd) {
    float: right;
    }

label {
    display: inline-block;
    width: 30%;
    text-align: right;
}

html:

<fieldset>
<ul>
    <li><label for="fieldOne">Field One:</label> <input type="text" id="fieldOne" name="fieldOne" /></li>
    <li><label for="fieldTwo">Field Two:</label> <input type="text" id="fieldTwo" name="fieldTwo" /></li>
</ul>

<ul>
    <li><label for="fieldThree">Field Three:</label> <input type="text" id="fieldThree" name="fieldThree" /></li>
    <li><label for="fieldFour">Field Four:</label> <input type="text" id="fieldFour" name="fieldFour" /></li>
</ul>
</fieldset>

<fieldset>
    <input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</fieldset>

</form>

Demo at: http://www.davidrhysthomas.co.uk/so/formCols.html

This solution does use CSS3 (the nth-child(odd)), which limits its cross-browser friendliness (though works in Opera, Chrome, Safari and Firefox on Ubuntu 10.04), so for IE-friendliness you'd have to explicitly add a class name to whichever column(s) you wanted to float: right.

David Thomas 2010-09-20 20:22:00

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How to create multi-column data entry form using CSS in Asp.Net?

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