Disappearing Form Boxes in Netscape

[tedster]

I'm wrestling with a strange one, and I wonder if anyone else has come across this.

I have a CGI page, with an input form for searching a database. When this page finishes loading in Netscape, the input boxes disappear! Never seen anything so strange. Forms are supposed to be the most senior object in the DOM.

Pressing reload brings the input boxes back to stay -- but that's nothing I want to have to tell a visitor. Does anyone have any insight on this?

[Brett_Tabke]

I've seen this problem before, and I can't remember the cure.

I would run it through a validator Tedster. Sounds like a classic table problem? Missing td, or tr some where.

If that isn't it, look at your form declaration statement. Every once-in-awhile, a bogus declaration in the form section and produce weird results.

[yanton]

It could be the loss of the closing form tag.

Also, sometimes when using a wizywig such as dreamweaver the closing tag gets misplaced too early in the form, so cutting out some fields.

[tedster]

Thanks for the input. The page is hand coded, and it passed Homesite's HTML validator -- but I thought I'd run it through Brett's Weblint validator [searchengineworld.com]. Sure enough I got some funky feedback. Only thing is I don't understand it.

A most suspicious 4 errors are for the name attributes of the form boxes. The report says they should be quoted -- but they ARE already in quotes, e.g. name="state".

A second set of 4 errors are like this example:

attribute `NAME' for <form> is extended markup (use "-x <extension>" to allow this)

Where does the "-x" go?

I appreciate the help. All of a sudden I feel like I fell into the deep end of the pool.

[oilman]

tedster - what's the URL (sticky mail if you like). I'd like to take a look at the code. A new set of eyes might catch it for you ;)

[Brett_Tabke]

The problem with WebLint is that it validates to html 3.2.

Try the validator at the w3c.

[validator.w3.org]