Welcome aboard! In today's lesson, we are exploring the dynamic duo of JavaScript and the Document Object Model (DOM). Working in tandem with the DOM, we can manipulate and update our web pages in real-time based on user interactions.
Do you remember how some websites greet, "Good morning!" during the day and "Good night!" after sundown? This dynamic behavior is exactly what we aim to achieve using JavaScript and DOM.
To introduce JavaScript into HTML, we need the <script> tag. Although JavaScript can be written directly inside HTML, it's often tidier to store it in separate files:
HTML, XML1<!DOCTYPE html> 2<html> 3 <body> 4 <h1>Welcome to My Web Page</h1> 5 <p id="demo">This is a paragraph.</p> 6 <!-- Linking an external JavaScript file --> 7 <script src="myscript.js"></script> 8 </body> 9</html>
Inline <script> tags also serve as an option:
HTML, XML1<!DOCTYPE html> 2<html> 3 <body> 4 <h1>Welcome to My Web Page</h1> 5 <p id="demo">This is a paragraph.</p> 6 <!-- Inline JavaScript --> 7 <script> 8 // Changing the paragraph text 9 document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = "Hello, there!"; 10 </script> 11 </body> 12</html>
The innerHTML property is a powerful tool that allows us to get the content of elements or directly insert content into elements in our HTML. In the code above, we used innerHTML to change the text content of a paragraph.
Atomic yet immense, DOM manipulation is achievable via JavaScript. This tool offers us the ability to grasp elements and perform operations on them much like a craftsman working on his creation. Here are some handy methods for DOM manipulation:
document.getElementById(id): This function fetches an element using its unique ID, much like how you would find a book in a library.document.getElementsByTagName(name): It selects all elements that share a specified tag name, such as all paragraphs (<p>).document.getElementsByClassName(name): This function retrieves all elements having the provided class name.document.querySelector(selector): Just as you pick out your favorite fruit from a basket, it selects the first element that matches the supplied CSS selector.
Selectors that return multiple elements (getElementsByTagName and getElementsByClassName) return a JS array of elements, so you need to select which element in the list you want through array indexing.
Below, we have an illustration of how we can select an HTML element and modify its content and style:
HTML, XML1<!DOCTYPE html> 2<html> 3 <body> 4 <h1 id="title">Hello World!</h1> 5 <button onclick="changeTitle()">Transform title</button> 6 <script> 7 function changeTitle() { 8 // Selects the 'title' element 9 let titleElement = document.getElementById('title'); 10 // Changes the element's content and color 11 titleElement.innerHTML = 'Hello JavaScript!'; 12 titleElement.style.color = 'red'; 13 } 14 </script> 15 </body> 16</html>
The <button> tag in HTML is used to create a clickable button on your webpage. Contained within the opening and closing <button> tags, you can place text or images. This content is what users see and click on. The onclick attribute is an event attribute that instructs the browser to execute a specific JavaScript function when the button is clicked. The function to be executed is specified right within the onclick attribute.
In this case, once the button is clicked it triggers the changeTitle() method. Within this method, we're setting the style.color property of titleElement. titleElement.style.color = 'red'; alters the CSS color of the text within this element to red.
Using getElements or querySelector to access an element is just the starting point. Once you have the reference to an element, there are many things you can do to manipulate it.
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Modifying content: As you've seen with
innerHTML, after selecting an element, you can directly manipulate its content. -
Changing style: You can change any CSS property of an element using
element.style.property. This covers a range of alterations from colors, dimensions, positioning, to transitions, transformations and visibility. Note: In JavaScript, CSS property names that contain a hyphen (likebackground-color) are converted to camelCase (becomesbackgroundColor). This is due to the fact that hyphens are not allowed in JavaScript variable names.
HTML, XML1<script> 2 let titleElement = document.getElementById('title'); 3 titleElement.style.backgroundColor = 'yellow'; //changes the background color of the title element to yellow 4</script>
Modifying content via innerHTML and changing style via element.style.property is just the beginning. Look at more options of manipulating elements.
- Adding or removing classes: You can add a new class to an element with
element.classList.add('className')or remove a class withelement.classList.remove('className').
HTML, XML1<div id="div2" class="oldClass">Some div</div> 2<script> 3 let otherDiv = document.querySelector('#div2'); 4 otherDiv.classList.add('newClass'); 5 otherDiv.classList.remove('oldClass'); 6</script>
- Setting or getting attributes: You can change any attribute of an element using
element.setAttribute('attrName', 'attrValue')or retrieve it withelement.getAttribute('attrName').
HTML, XML1<img id="image1" src="myimage.jpg"> 2<script> 3 let img = document.getElementById('image1'); 4 img.setAttribute('alt', 'An image'); 5 let imgSource = img.getAttribute('src'); 6 console.log(imgSource); // prints 'myimage.jpg' to the console 7</script>
- Event handling: With a reference to an element, you can attach an event listener that will execute a specified function when the event occurs, using syntax like
element.addEventListener('click', function). Note that when adding an event, the function does not require()likeonclick.
HTML, XML1<button class="btn">Click me</button> 2<script> 3 let btn = document.getElementsByClassName('btn')[0]; 4 btn.addEventListener('click', function() { 5 alert('Button clicked!'); // the alert function displays a dialog box containing the provided text 6 }); 7</script>
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Creation and deletion of elements: Using methods such as
document.createElement('tagName')to create an element orelement.removeChild(childElement)to remove a child element.The
document.createElement('tagName')will create an empty element with the tag name you provide. However, when an element is created like this, it does not automatically appear on the webpage. To make it visible, you have to append the new element to an existing element on the page usingappendChild(). TheappendChild()method places a node as the last child of its parent. WithappendChild(), you can also dynamically add new content to your document.
HTML, XML1<button onclick="createPara()">Create a paragraph</button> 2<button onclick="removePara()">Remove the paragraph</button> 3<div id="myDiv"></div> 4<script> 5function createPara() { 6 let para = document.createElement("P"); 7 let t = document.createTextNode("This is a paragraph."); 8 para.appendChild(t); // using appendChild to insert the created text node into the paragraph 9 document.getElementById("myDiv").appendChild(para); // appending the paragraph to the existing div 10} 11function removePara() { 12 let parent = document.getElementById("myDiv"); 13 let child = parent.getElementsByTagName("P")[0]; 14 parent.removeChild(child); // removing the paragraph from the div 15} 16</script>
With just a few keystrokes in JavaScript, voila, you've transformed the entire persona of your webpage!
Great job, future web wizards! You have now mastered the art of manipulating web pages using JavaScript and the DOM! From linking JavaScript to your HTML, understanding how to select elements using methods like getElementById, getElementsByTagName and querySelector, to dynamically updating these elements by changing their content, style, attributes or even adding and removing them.
You've learned how JavaScript can interact with the DOM to update your webpages in real-time, providing the ability to create a rich and interactive user experience that can respond to user inputs and actions dynamically.
Next up are practice exercises for you to apply this newfound knowledge and help turn this knowledge into an intuitive understanding. Then, in future lessons, we'll venture into more advanced topics and broaden your understanding of JavaScript and web development as a whole.
Buckle up and let's continue to explore the wonderful and exciting world of JavaScript and web development!