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Option Buttons:An option button, also referred to as a radio button, represents a single choice within a limited set of mutually exclusive choices - that is, in any group of option buttons, only one option in the group can be set. Accordingly, always group option buttons in sets of two or more. Option buttons appear as a set of small circles. When an option button choice is set, a dot appears in the middle of the circle. When the choice is not the current setting, the circle is empty. Avoid using option buttons to start an action other than the setting of a particular option or value represented by the option button. The only exception is that you can support double-clicking the option button as a shortcut for setting the value and carrying out the default command of the window in which the option buttons appear, if choosing an option button is the primary user action for the window. You can use option buttons to represent a set of choices for a particular property. When the option buttons reflect a selection with mixed values for that property, display all the buttons in the group using the mixed-value appearance to indicate that multiple values exist for that property. The mixed-value appearance for a group of option buttons displays all buttons without a setting dot. If the user chooses any option button in a group with mixed-value appearance, that value becomes the setting for the group; the dot appears in that button and all the other buttons in the group remain empty. Limit the use of option buttons to small sets of options, typically seven or less, but always at least two. If you need more choices, consider using another control, such as a single selection list box or drop-down list box. Each option button includes a text label. (If you need graphic labels for a group of exclusive choices, consider using command buttons instead.) The standard control allows you to include multiple line labels. When implementing multiple line labels, use top alignment, unless the context requires an alternate orientation. Define the option button's label to represent the value or effect for that choice. Also use the label to indicate when the choice is unavailable. Use sentence capitalization for an option button's label; only capitalize the first letter of the first word, unless it is a word in the label normally capitalized. Because option buttons appear as a group, you can use a group box control to visually define the group. You can label the option buttons to be relative to a group box's label. For example, for a group box labeled Alignment, you can label the option buttons as Left, Right, and Center. As with command buttons, the mouse interface for choosing an option button uses a click with mouse button 1 (for pens, tapping) either on the button's circle or on the button's label. The input focus is moved to the option button's label when the user presses the mouse button, and the option button displays its pressed appearance. If the user moves the pointer off the option button before releasing the mouse button, the option button is returned to its original state. The option is not set until the user releases the mouse button while the pointer is over the control. Releasing the mouse button outside of the option button or its label has no effect on the current setting of the option button. In addition, successive mouse clicks on the same option button do not toggle the button's state; the user needs to explicitly select an alternative choice in the group to change or restore a former choice. Assign access keys to option button labels to provide a keyboard interface to the buttons. You can also define the TAB or arrow keys to allow the user to navigate and choose a button. Access keys or arrow keys automatically set an option button and set the input focus to that button. |