[whatwg] Safari-compatible <input type="search">

[Christoph Päper]

Andy Lyttle:

> results - if present, shows a little magnifying glass icon, which  
> helps to visually identify the field as a search box

The magnifying glass was a particularly poor choice by Apple[1],  
because icons featuring one usually represent zooming (in).  
Binoculars are (for some reason) more common as symbols for searches.  
Eyes and spectacles OTOH most often represent visibility.

Anyhow, the appearance of this or other types of |input| should not  
be specified by HTML5 / WF2+.

> results=10 - the magnifying glass functions as a drop-down menu  
> containing a history of the last (whatever number) search terms

I'm not sure, but I think it would be a first to have a "binary  
attribute" that is overloaded to alternatively also accept an integer  
as its value. Therefore

   <input type=search results>

would have to be equivalent to

   <input type=search results=0>

and not

   <input type=search results=results>

which looks wrong, because you would at least expect it to mean

   <input type=search results=1>.


[1] I could name a number of other poorly chosen Apple icons, but  
their fault usually is cultural bias or disharmony within a set.