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William Hudson <[log in to unmask]>
Sat, 2 Jun 2007 17:27:00 +0100
text/plain (34 lines)
The thing that has concerned me most in the past with radio buttons that
have no default is that it is not possible for users to return them to
their original state without forcing a page reload. If the 'not
selected' state really is significant ('not applicable' for example)
then there ought to be an item with that choice. If a default really is
'dangerous' then make it 'None' (for currency) or 'Don't know' for
yes/no and similar.

FWIW we had been developing graphical user interfaces for Windows and
the Mac (and others) for around 10 years before the web became a serious
issue. Radio button groups *always* had a default in that period. In
fact, if you look at desktop applications on most platforms you will be
hard pressed to find an exception. Let's not give users new twists to
puzzle over.

Regards,

William Hudson
Syntagm Ltd
User-Centred Design Consultancy and Training
US Toll Free 1-866-SYNTAGM
UK 01235-522859
World +44-1235-522859
mailto:[log in to unmask]
http://www.syntagm.co.uk
http://www.designforusability.com

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