DropDownList advice needed

D

dw

Hello. I have a page that needs to display a huge amount of data in a
dropdown list (10k+). Is there an easier way to implement this in .NET than
in classic ASP? I asked this same thing in the classic ASP newsgroup, and
Curt_C was kind enough to respond and say that the best way to do it is via
a search/select mechanism. I just wanted to see what better possibilities
existed in ASP.NET. Then maybe I can convince my department to quit dragging
their feet on letting us use ASP.NET. Thanks :)
 
K

Kevin Spencer

I hope someone in the Classic ASP newsgroup pointed out to you that 10,000
(I didn't use the K because it makes it look a lot smaller than it really
is) items in a drop-down list box on a web page (or anywhere else, but
especially on a web page) is not practical, for the following reasons:

1. The page will take forever to load.
2. Depending upon the client, it could very well cause the client machine to
run out of memory.
3. Nobody will ever be able to find the item they are looking for.

Have you ever SEEN a drop-down list box with 10,000 items in it? Neither
have I. Kind of makes you think, doesn't it?

--
HTH,

Kevin Spencer
Microsoft MVP
..Net Developer
Neither a follower nor a lender be.
 
D

dw

Thanks, Peter and Kevin. I've scrapped the idea of the dropdown for the very
reasons you both pointed out. I'm developing the search/select option
instead. It's more code, but it's faster and more efficient -- plus it's
easier for users to find someone.

A followup which is kind of unrelated: My department won't go with ASP.NET
because they say if me and another developer leave, they won't have anyone
who can take over our code. And they say it's harder to learn than ASP.
They're all programmers (COBOL mostly), so to me this is bogus. Do you guys
know of some strong counter-arguments to the reasons these folks won't go
with ASP.NET? You don't have to convince me -- I'm sold on the technology. I
just need to convince the holdouts in our department who are scared of new
technologies. Thanks :)
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
473,744
Messages
2,569,483
Members
44,902
Latest member
Elena68X5

Latest Threads

Top