In HTML5 draft specification there is a new event http://goo.gl/aMQNT called "input" which fires *as soon as* data is input into a form (e.g. before the element loses focus - so before "change" would fire). This is very useful for form handling.

As it is an HTML5 feature it is naturally supported by only some of the most recent browsers (e.g. Chrome 8). It would be brilliant if jQuery could provide a fix so that the "input" event could display the same behaviour in all browsers (like it has done for preventDefault() etc.)

I haven't fully diagnosed how the "input" event works, but I imagine it would be similar to:

$(element).bind(
    'keyup click change',
    function(evt) {
        if($(this).tagName.match(formElements) && formHasChanged()) {
            // Fire event
        } else {
            evt.preventDefault();
        }
    }
)

Obviously this is only rudimentary pseudo-code. The actual solution would be far more complex I'm sure.