formReForm Rendering Library for HTML Forms

formReForm takes a group of typical HTML form elements and creates a nice, clean, styleable form layout in 1, 2, or 4 columns.

The Itch

Multi-column layouts for form elements have been a challenge; some developers find that their only option is a table-based layout or use only two columns (label + field).

The Scratch

formReForm uses CSS to take usable, accessible and correctly coded form elements and formReForms them into a style to fit any design and layout. The current rendering method for this transformation is Javascript, but server-side rendering functions will follow.

To see formReForm in action, check out the demo.

The Details

The formReForm project started with two articles at dzone.com. The original concept of using CSS to create a usable form was discussed the article reForm: CSS Form Design Template for Any Layout. Taking the idea one step further, the javascript library is discussed in the article reForm: CSS Form Design Template for Any Layout (Part 2)

The Invite

The end goal of this concept is valid html that can be styled. Currently, this is done in Javascript on the client-side. I'm working on functions to duplicate the same principles on the server-side. If you are a GURU of a specific language and would like to see the formreform concept ported to your preferred language, join up.

The Rights

It's GPL. Use, abuse, distribute, contribute ... but always attribute.

The Small Print

The formReForm Library is (c) 2008 Joe Lippeatt. See README.txt for GNU General Public License.