178341 - Submit valueOf()/toString() for Objects in Forms

Status: VERIFIED DUPLICATE of bug 188938

(Core Graveyard :: Plug-ins, defect, P5)

Description

[Bob Clary [:bc] (inactive)]

The above URL is from bug 178026. This is a continuation/completion of bug 127847.

Click on submit in Mozilla and it will not send any information regarding the
Object contained in the form. IE6 will send the object's name and the toString()
value of the object however. In the case where the method of the form is GET, it
will use the query string: the valueOf()/toString() : ?object1=%5Bobject%5D

Comment 1

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

One problem here -- valueOf()/toString() are JS methods, no?  The form
submission code only has access to the underlying DOM object, not its JS
wrapper...  Not to mention that our toString() on the wrapper is totally
different from IE's toString().

Thoughts?

Comment 2

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

We _could_ just hardcode the "%5Bobject%5D" if we really need to...

But what I would really like to do is to investigate the MS docs and see whether
this behavior is for a reason or a side effect of their form submission impl
(and hence liable to change).

Comment 3

[Bob Clary [:bc] (inactive)]

I couldn't find any docs in my local install of MSDN library that covered the
behavior of Object in a Form.

Comment 4

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

Attachment: more extensive testcase

Bob, since I don't have IE6, would you mind telling me what query string this
testcase submits?

Comment 5

[James Cox]

so er, bz asked me to point out that with ie version 6.0.2800.1106 SP1. i get 
taken to the following url:

http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/tn-127847.html?object1=%5Bobject%5D&object2=%
5Bobject%5D&object3=%5Bobject%5D

Comment 6

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

The point of that last test was:

1) IE only submits the <object> if some magic rendering condition (loaded data for
   it?) is met.
2) It seems to always submit the value as "[object]" (I tried setting the toString
   on the object, but IE does not allow setting that on <object>s). 

Given that, I don't think this is very urgent (since the value IE submits is
useless; futuring pending a testcase that demonstrates IE submitting something
useful.  (See also comment 2, the "side effect" part.)

Comment 7

[Bob Clary [:bc] (inactive)]

Ok with me if you kill this one off.

Comment 8

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

then wontfix.  Especially since jrgm says his IE6 SP1 doesn't even submit the
<object>s.  If IE6 can't make up its mind, this is not exactly something people
will depend on.  ;)

Comment 9

[Vladimir Ermakov]

verifying

Comment 10

[Vladimir Ermakov]

Objects are suppose to be submitted according to HTML 4.01 spec:
    Authors may insert generic objects in forms such that associated values are
submitted along with other controls. Authors create object controls with the
OBJECT element.

I dont know much about objects, and why one would want them to submit a value
but it seems like a valid issue, even though IE doesnt support it...

Comment 11

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

If you note the HTML spec says nothing about what should be submitted.  Neither
does the DOM HTML spec.  HTMLObjectElement has no .value property in the DOM. 
It has no "value" attribute in the HTML DTD declared for it.

Tell me what should be submitted and I will submit it, but the spec is pretty
useless here.  I could submit the string "screw you" for objects and be
compliant with the spec.

Comment 12

[Vladimir Ermakov]

Perhaps the bug is then the lack of the value property. I asked jkeiser about
this and he said the reason objects are said to be submittable is because these
objects can embed an applet that is a custom form control (color palette for
example), and would want to submit some sort of value (rgb color code in this
case). We should   implement a way to communicate between objects and dom, so
they can set the value to be submitted. 

Comment 13

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

OK, to plug-ins.  There is no standard for this; we would have to just make up
some bullshit.

Comment 14

[John Keiser (jkeiser)]

There is already a bug on it, too.

valueOf / toString is most *certainly* not the thing to submit, so this bug in
particular is not valid.  It Makes No Sense.

Comment 15

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

John, form stuff is your module.  Feel free to resolve the bug.  ;)

Comment 16

[John Keiser (jkeiser)]

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 188938 ***

Comment 17

[Vladimir Ermakov]

verifying.