PRB: Internet Explorer Does Not Display Title Attribute Using the Select Tag (221608)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0 for Windows NT 4.0
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0
  • Microsoft Windows 98
This article was previously published under Q221608

SYMPTOMS

Internet Explorer fails to display the Title attribute of the <SELECT> tag.

STATUS

This behavior is by design.

MORE INFORMATION

If the <SELECT> tag is disabled in the HTML document, the contents of the Title attribute displays as a tooltip, as in the following example: 
<select name="NAME" disabled title="This text will appear in a tooltip popup.">

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

Here is an example of HTML that does not display the Title attribute: 
<html>
<head>
<title></title>
</head>
<body>
<form>
    <p><select name="NAME" size="1"
    title="This text should appear in a tooltip popup, but does not.">
        <option>Option1 </option>
        <option>Option2 </option>
        <option>Option3 </option>
    </select> </p>
</form>
</body>
</html>
Here is an example of HTML with the SELECT element disabled. The Title does display as a tooltip when the pointer hovers over it: 
<html>
<head>
<title></title>
</head>
<body>
<form>
    <p><select name="NAME" size="1"

    disabled title="This text should appear in a tooltip popup.">
        <option>Option1 </option>
        <option>Option2 </option>
        <option>Option3 </option>
    </select> </p>
</form>
</body>
</html>
NOTE: The Title attribute is not in the HTML 4.0 specifications. It is an Internet Explorer-specific attribute.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:12/21/2004
Keywords:kbprb KB221608
©2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.