This plugin makes it easy to apply a "maxlength" attribute to custom elements for example a <textarea>. It also gives you the possibility to add a nice character counter under the element that shows the user how many chars he/she has left before the maxlength is reached, and/or an alert message.
To use this on a simple text area, all you have to do is:
<script type="text/javascript">
$(document).ready(function(){
$('#textarea_1_1').maxlength();
});
</script>
