ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies®

12.5. Increasing a Page's Usability

Power users make extensive use of the keyboard. Some touch the mouse only when necessary — because the mouse slows them down or overuse of the pointer has left them with repetitive strain injury (RSI). You can make any data entry form more user-friendly by paying attention to tab order, accelerator keys, and first focus.

12.5.1. Setting the tab order

Data entry professionals move from control to control using the Tab key. They also care about the order of the controls on a form. Consider this: You're a customer service representative taking information from someone on the telephone. You ask for the order details in a logical sequence and enter the data. However, each time you hit the Tab key, the focus goes to the wrong control.

ASP.NET controls include a TabIndex property that lets you set the tab order. A tab sequence goes from the lowest to highest index number and then starts over. It's best to check with the users as to their preference in tab order. For example, in Figure 12-8, should the tab order be horizontal from Produce to Quantity or vertical from Produce to UPC? The choice could depend on the order in which the user is gathering the data or the behavior of a familiar Windows application.

NOTE

You never have full control over the browse sequence because browsers themselves include controls, such as the Address text box in the tab sequence.

Enter the TabIndex value as 10, 15, 20, 25 and so on rather than 1, 2, 3, 4. If you have ...