Web Design in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition

Every form (unless it consists of exactly one text field) needs a submit button control to initiate the transmission of information to the server. A form may have more than one submit button. By default, the submit button (type="submit") says “Submit” or “Submit Query,” but you can change it by adding your own text after the value attribute.

The reset button (type="reset") reverts all form controls back to the state they were in when the form loaded (either blank or with values provided by the author with the value attribute). The default value (and hence the label for the button) is “Reset,” but like the submit button, you can change its text by specifying its value, as shown in Figure 15-7.

    <p>You have completed the form.</p>
    <input type="submit" /><input type="reset" value="Start Over" />

Figure 15-7. Submit and reset buttons

Some developers opt to leave the reset button out entirely, because there is no error-checking mechanism. If a user presses it accidentally, all the data already entered is lost. This isn’t an uncommon occurrence.