Last modified: 2010-07-04 17:19:33 UTC
Enter a term which has an exact article match, such as 'stuff' in the advanced search form or the top-side search field on a Special:Search results page. In MSIE 6 and 7, hitting 'enter' submits the form, but doesn't activate the default button (the way clicking it does), so no fulltext request is passed with it. Currently this seems to trigger a 'go' search, which is kind of lame. Firefox and various other browsers send the default button's info with the form, so we get a fulltext search with enter as well.
I note today here using Firefox on a friends MS Windows system, that while editing an article, it is very easy for a press of ENTER to be the equivalent of clicking SAVE PAGE. Apparently there are many places on an action=edit page, that depending on where ones pointer or cursor is at, will send all ENTERs to the SAVE PAGE button.
That's an example of a form working correctly -- the default button is the action which is triggered by hitting enter.
OK, but how often do folks use ENTER to send this particular form? Maybe pick a safer default action, like PREVIEW, or EDIT HELP. Just my browsing experience, but I've always used the mouse to click the SAVE PAGE button. Actually lately. I've been using "[" in emacs-w3m to get to the SAVE PAGE button, (and then hitting indeed ENTER there, but that is a w3m ENTER.) Anyway, I sure wouldn't want to make the form less accessible due to uses I'm not familiar with. Anyway, I suspect incomplete edits happen often, and the user just curses their bad luck with the keyboard, and clicks EDIT to edit some more again. And as they haven't mastered the keyboard, they of course haven't mastered reporting this usability problem too.
Just happened to me again on the login page. User: Jidanni ENTER wham, login incorrect. All my fault of course. I am supposed to type TAB, not ENTER, if I wish to enter a password. Anyway, just want to give you a rare glimpse of what it is like for users who (fortuneately [[[[I can't use the spell checker today also, sorry.]]]] perhaps) aren't at the level where they can report it to the bug system.
Please do not add further comments on this bug which are about the standard functioning of other forms which work exactly like every other form in the entire universe.
Confirmed under IE 8 beta 2
Honestly I think all this requires is throwing a "fulltext" hidden field into the form. Should be insanely easy to fix!
Fixed in r47598
