The document.<formName>.<elementName> syntax instead of document.forms[<formName>].element[<elementName>] was one of the worst mistakes made at Netscape in creting the language - and Microsoft didn't make it especially much better.
How should you handle a form named "forms" with a child element named "forms", for instance? document.forms["forms"].elements["forms"] is the full format - but does document.forms["forms"] not reference by short form the element at the same time it by full form referece the form? Or how about an element with the id "all" in IE?
Less code = pretty
The goals sometimes justify the ways.
>Less code = pretty
Less code == more prone to errors
<form name="search">
<h2><img name="search" src="search.gif" alt="Search!"></h2>
<p id="search">This is a search form</p>
</form>
'document.search', say you?
How should you handle a form named "forms" with a child element named "forms", for instance? document.forms["forms"].elements["forms"] is the full format - but does document.forms["forms"] not reference by short form the element at the same time it by full form referece the form? Or how about an element with the id "all" in IE?