Looking for accesible alternative to javascript dependent menus

[kiwibrit]

I am re-writing my company's website. One of the useful pages for our customers in the present site accesses 50 options in a form via a javascript triple drop down menu. Restructuring the site means I could now use javascript double dependent drop down menus accessing about 20 options. However for true accessibility, I should like to eliminate javascript dependence.

What do you think is the best way of doing that? Are there particularly neat examples you could share? Any method I can think of involves page reloading - I think I could live with that.

[Kravvitz]

If you are referring to <select> elements, then you could use a server-side language script instead of JavaScript for anyone who is using a browser that does not have JavaScript enabled.

Otherwise:
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/dropdowns/
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/horizdropdowns/
http://www.htmldog.com/articles/suckerfish/dropdowns/
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/hybrid/

[kiwibrit]

Thanks, Kravvitz. The problem is that I must work with IE5.5+, and am trying to avoid javascript, totally. In a form.

At the moment, if I use javascript, I can achieve what I want with something like this (http://javascriptkit.com/script/cut183.shtml). But I don't want to use javascript, bearing in mind the arguments concerning accessibility if I do. So I need to go server side, preferably with php - because I am beginning to pick up a smattering of that. I think I will have to accept a page reload. Given that, I was wondering what the most elegant solutions were.

[NogDog]

If you go server-side, essentially you'll have to break the form into a sequence of forms across 2 or more pages, doing processing on the server side to populate subsequent form pages based on selections from the preceding pages. (You've seen this on many e-commerce sites: fill in some fields and make some selections, then click a "continue" or "next" button which brings you to the next page, often with certain fields/choices populated based on your inputs.

If using PHP, using sessions can help you store form data across the entire sequence of pages.

[kiwibrit]

Thanks, NogDog. I think that's what I'll have to do. I think I know enough php to get started on that. But I have a feeling you may see me in the php section :)

It's a pity that javascript doesn't seem to be accepted as a legitimate essential from an accessibility viewpoint - it's available on all modern browsers. However, I shall just have to get on with it.

[felgall]

Javascript is not available on any web browser that blind people have available for their use - converting Javascript into speech is somewhat difficult in most cases.