[whatwg] Please consider adding a couple more datetime <input> types - type="year" and type="month-day"

Andrew Hayward andrew.hayward+whatwg.specs at gmail.com
Tue Aug 24 05:32:00 PDT 2010


>>>> * it has the *semantic* of being a year, which is a special type of
>>>> number (potentially more than four digits if you subscribe to "Long
>>>> Now"[1] methodology, or fewer than four as Andy noted).
>>>
>>> Why is it useful to declare this semantic to the browser? What functional difference do you envision compared to a field that accepts an integer (potentially with min and max values relevant to the site)?
>>
>> Future browser could offer a calendar tool to fill input fields that have a date semantic. While this would be appropriate, it would not be appropriate to offer a calendar tool for other integer data e.g. an input field that asks the user for his monthly income in USD.
>
> What kind of calendar tool is more efficient for entering a year (year only without a month or day) than a UI that is optimized for entering an integer (typically text field plus spinbox arrows that also respond to arrow keys and input method defaulting to digits on phones and similar)?
>
> (Also "future browser could" is a bit weak unless someone writing code for a browser indicates that he/she is actively implementing a given feature.)

"Future browser" issues aside, it's entirely plausible that a browser
might allow me to drop events (from my calendar software, for example,
or just something else semantically a 'date' on the web) onto a
'date'-identified input field, extracting the relevant pieces of
information and filling as appropriate.


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