ADF Validator and Converter Components Usage for Input - Thoughts?

[Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience [Apps Usability])]

Anyone made use of the ADF validator and converter components
(ConvertDateTime, ConvertNumber, ValidateByteLength,
ValidateDateRestriction, ValidateDateTimeRange, and so on) in your ADF
enterprise apps?

Your thoughts on their use as client-side validation mechanisms in
your implementations would be useful in shaping apps usability.

See the components here:
http://jdevadf.oracle.com/adf-richclient-demo/faces/components/index.jspx?_afrRedirect=675057793976239

Specifically interested in, though not restricted to, such issues as

a) Do you find the examples in the hint text useful? ("1998" for
dates? Let me chase that)

b) Are popups for hints and messages the way to go? How about examples
inline like HTML 5 placeholder forms types? See: http://slides.html5rocks.com/#new-form-types

c) Ease of binding the input formats and examples to any user
preferences you might have (such as user choice of a date or time
format or localization format).

d) Any canned validators or converters that you think might be useful
in your apps?

e) Related client-side validation, generally.


Ultan

[Bijesh Krishnadas]

Hello Ultan,

a) Yes, examples are better than displaying a format text, imho

b) Yes, I find "watermarked" input boxes a good option but I am unsure
of how well they play with accessibility. Primefaces, for e.g., has a
watermark component that does this. Having said that making watermarks
the *only* option may not be a good idea?

d) Well, using regex we are covered for 80% cases I would think :)

--
Bijesh

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[Jean-Marc Desvaux]

Hi Ultan,

About hint popups : I find it a bit annoying/"intrusive" sometimes.

The best to me would be a choice of one or both of the following:-
1/. Light watermarking (no default value, just a watermark).
2/. Instead of the popup, a small help icon popup near the component on which you can click to get the full popup.

-Jean-Marc

[Andreas Koop]

Thanks for enabling us to give feedback and maybe beeing part of
future ADF directions...

> a) Do you find the examples in the hint text useful? ("1998" for
> dates? Let me chase that)

In general yes. But sometimes the default sample text confuses end
users, because e.g. only a date in 20** makes sense. So maybe the
default hint in the 21th centuary would improve UX. or even random
sample dates....

>
> b) Are popups for hints and messages the way to go? How about examples
> inline like HTML 5 placeholder forms types? See:http://slides.html5rocks.com/#new-form-types

As placeholders are/will be part of a standard spec. future ADF
components should take advantage of those features. Of course it
should also be tested what is the best choice for screenreaders. In
the current implementation (of accessibility) popuphints are
transformed into an "information"-icon with link to a separate page
(img alt="Information" title="Information" => Page with "Beispiel:
29.11.1998", "Press ESC to leave popup"). IMHO This UX is not really
userfriendly. Wouldn't it be better to have the hint within the alt
attribute (img alt="Information: Beispiel: 29.11.1998"
title="Information: Beispiel: 29.11.1998")?

> c) Ease of binding the input formats and examples to any user
> preferences you might have (such as user choice of a date or time
> format or localization format).
> d) Any canned validators or converters that you think might be useful
> in your apps?
>

An often requirement in "strongly data entry driven apps" is to
provide special (localized) input features, eg.
- User inputs h which means "heute" (GER) which should be transformed
into the current date
- User inputs 1w which means "1 week" which should be transformed into
the date of( current date + 1 week)
- ...


Andreas.

[Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience [Apps Usability])]

True, you can write your own validations. I believe screenreaders can
handle the placeholder text. Perhaps what is needed is an inline
property similar to af:messages so example text could be rendered
either in popup or as placeholder.

On Feb 3, 5:16 am, Bijesh Krishnadas <bijeshkrishna...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> Hello Ultan,
>
> a) Yes, examples are better than displaying a format text, imho
>
> b) Yes, I find "watermarked" input boxes a good option but I am unsure
> of how well they play with accessibility. Primefaces, for e.g., has a
> watermark component that does this. Having said that making watermarks
> the *only* option may not be a good idea?
>
> d) Well, using regex we are covered for 80% cases I would think :)
>
> --
> Bijesh
>
> On Fri, Feb 3, 2012 at 3:52 AM, Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications
> User Experience [Apps Usability]) <ultan....@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > Anyone made use of the ADF validator and converter components
> > (ConvertDateTime, ConvertNumber, ValidateByteLength,
> > ValidateDateRestriction, ValidateDateTimeRange, and so on) in your ADF
> > enterprise apps?
>
> > Your thoughts on their use as client-side validation mechanisms in
> > your implementations would be useful in shaping apps usability.
>
> > See the components here:

> >http://jdevadf.oracle.com/adf-richclient-demo/faces/components/index....

[Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience [Apps Usability])]

That would be an option too. Placeholder text is limited really to
example text as a guide to input format and needs to fit within the
length of the field, so consideration for other, longer texts could be
provided by the help icon. You can of course customize the popup with
additional information, not restricted by field length.

[Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience [Apps Usability])]

Definitely, localized examples should be automatically switched in
depending on the region/country selected by the user (or detected). I
have logged an internal enhancement to revise the 1998 example date to
something more current.

[Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience [Apps Usability])]

On investigation with accessibility folks, it seems that assistive
technology will have all the info it needs via the HTML - what the
label is and an example of entry. How that information is presented to
the user is the screen readers responsibility - and JAWS (http://
www.freedomscientific.com/products/fs/jaws-product-page.asp) and NVDA
(http://www.nvda-project.org/) both do read the placeholder text.

On Feb 4, 12:57 pm, Ultan Ó Broin (Oracle Applications User Experience

[Andreas Koop]

Thanks for your effort in investigating the accessibility related
stuff. Well, to conclude I would say it is really wise for ADF
frontend components to be as close as possible to the current and
future HTML/JS/CSS features - at least in screenreading mode.

We can leave the accessibility stuff and move on with the initial
feedback request for questions a-e from further members ;)