Question

How would I go about detecting the order in which checkboxes are checked? I have a list of checkboxes on a form, and I need to have users select their first and second choices (but no more). So, given this:

<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a1"> Option 1
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a2"> Option 2
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a3"> Option 3
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a4"> Option 4

If someone selects option 2, then option 3, I’d like to have some indicator that option 2 was the first choice, and option 3 was the second choice. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

Update:

These are extremely helpful suggestions, thank you. As I test these examples, it’s giving me a better idea of how to approach the problem – but I’m still a bit stuck (I’m a JS novice). What I want to do is have these labels change as the checkboxes are checked or unchecked, to indicate which is the first or second selection:

<label id="lblA1"></label><input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a1"> Option 1
<label id="lblA2"></label><input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a2"> Option 2
<label id="lblA3"></label><input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a3"> Option 3
<label id="lblA4"></label><input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a4"> Option 4

So if someone clicks Option 2, then Option 3, lblA2 will display “First”, and lblA3 will display “Second”. If someone unchecks Option 2 while Option 3 is still checked, lblA3 becomes “First”. Hopefully this makes sense?

Thanks!

Answer 1

If you are using jQuery. Below code is does what you have explained and it is tested.
I have used global variables.

<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a1" /> Option 1
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a2" /> Option 2
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a3" /> Option 3
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a4" /> Option 4
<input type="button" value="do" id="btn" />

As shown below, it also handles the situation that user unchecks a choice.

$(document).ready(function () {
    var first = "";
    var second = "";
    $('input[name="checkbox1"]').change(function () {
        if ($(this).attr('checked')) {
            if (first == "") {
                first = $(this).attr('value');
            }
            else if (second == "") {
                second = $(this).attr('value');
            }
        }
        else {
            if (second == $(this).attr('value')) {
                second = "";
            }
            else if (first == $(this).attr('value')) {
                first = second;
                second = "";
            }
        }
    });
    $('#btn').click(function () {
        alert(first);
        alert(second);
    });
});

I hope that it will be helpful.

UPDATE [IMPORTANT]:

I have noticed that my previous code was incomplete, for example, if you check a1, then a2, then a3, then uncheck a2; my code was not recognising a3 as second.
Here is the complete solution of your updated problem. I used array this time.

The complete HTML:

<label id="lblA1"></label>
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a1" /> Option 1
<label id="lblA2"></label>
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a2" /> Option 2
<label id="lblA3"></label>
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a3" /> Option 3
<label id="lblA4"></label>
<input name="checkbox1" type="checkbox" value="a4" /> Option 4

The complete Javascript:

$(document).ready(function () {
    var array = [];
    $('input[name="checkbox1"]').click(function () {
        if ($(this).attr('checked')) {
            // Add the new element if checked:
            array.push($(this).attr('value'));
        }
        else {
            // Remove the element if unchecked:
            for (var i = 0; i < array.length; i++) {
                if (array[i] == $(this).attr('value')) {
                    array.splice(i, 1);
                }
            }
        }
        // Clear all labels:
        $("label").each(function (i, elem) {
            $(elem).html("");
        });
        // Check the array and update labels.
        for (var i = 0; i < array.length; i++) {
            if (i == 0) {
                $("#lbl" + array[i].toUpperCase()).html("first");
            }
            if (i == 1) {
                $("#lbl" + array[i].toUpperCase()).html("second");
            }
        }
    });
});