Topic:

<TEXTAREA> ... </TEXTAREA> Text input area

Definition:

Used to define a text input area for an HTML input form, typically for multiple lines of text.

Attributes:

NAME="name"

supplies a name for the form field, which will be paired with the value that's ultimately entered for submission to the underlying CGI script or other service program that processes the form.

ROWS="number"

"Number" defines the number of lines of text that the field can accommodate. Typical values for non-narrative forms range from 2 to 6, but HTML will allow large textareas if needed (prudence dictates that page-long input would be better handled by allowing users to upload text files from the editor of their choice, rather than typing into a text field on a form).

COLS="number"

"Number" defines the number of columns for any given line of text in the TEXTAREA field. Common practice is to limit the number of columns to 72 or less, that being a common limitation for the number of characters a line can hold within the outside page frame of a browser program on-screen (80 is the typical maximum for normal character-mode displays).

Context:

<TEXTAREA> ... </TEXTAREA> is legal within:

The following markup can be used within <TEXTAREA> ... </TEXTAREA>

Suggested style/usage:

The end tag marks the end of the string used to initialize the field (which can include a default string supplied by the form's author). Thus, even if the field is empty -- meaning that <TEXTAREA> and </TEXTAREA> are adjacent to one another -- the end tag is essential to indicate a null value for the field.

Use TEXTAREA whenever you have a multi-line input field in a form.

Example:

Please see the Fill In Forms tutorial for examples.