Question

I have a select menu, like so

<%= f.select(:size, options_for_select(@sizes_availiable), :prompt => "Select Size") %>

With the prompt “Select Size”. The problem is, the user can choose “Select Size” and it still will allow the form to be submitted. How do I disallow the user from choose that as a value, given that all the sizes are strings as well?

Answer 1

There’s are a couple of things you can do:

# as suggested, use :include_blank
f.select :size, options_for_select(@sizes_availiable), include_blank: "Select Size"
# wihch creates an 'option' tag with no value and 'Select Size' text

# or/and add a validation
validates :size, presence: true
validates :size, numericality: true       # or
validates :size, format: { with: /\d+/ }  #

However, you should always include validations to prevent malign users from manipulating the form and submitting random stuff.