Question

How can I use the <label> tag within an ASP.NET application? I want it to be valid, accessible, and usable.

I understand the optimal HTML way is this:

<label for='Username'>Username:</label> <input type='text' id='Username' runat='server' /> 

But if the above code is in an ASP.NET user control, the input ID will change, meaning the label’s ‘for’ attribute is useless. I could make the label tag a server control and set its ‘for’ attribute in the code (Username.ClientID), but it seems like a lot of work for such a simple thing.

I’ve also seen this HTML used in the past:

<label>     <span>Username</span>     <input type='text' id='Username' runat='server' /> </label> 

What is the proper approach?

Answer 1

I use <asp:Label ... AssociatedControlID='Username' ...> controls for this. They get rendered as <label> tags and set the for attribute appropriately.

Note that you can also nest other tags within the Label control if you wish:

<asp:Label ID='UsernameLabel'            Text='Username:'            AssociatedControlID='UsernameTextBox'            runat='server'>     <asp:TextBox ID='UsernameTextBox' runat='server' /> </asp:Label>