attn: Sridhar Balasubramanian

Anon

sorry sorry sorry for the "subject" line; Please forgive me. Also, I know many people will yell at me for even mentioning Javascript here.....

But.... I have a Javascript question where even the Javascript Forums' people can't help me.....

Do you subscribe to any Javascript forum or the comp.lang.javascript newsgroup, where I can ask you my exceedingly difficult Javascript question?

You seem to be a PHP genius, and your Javascript knowledge seems to be as good. That's why I'm requesting your help. It's regarding blur/focus/keypress that just isn't working for me.

THANK YOU!!

theslinky

sure, I can help out.

you can email me at php@theslinky.com

or just post your question in the General forum and hope no one gets angry :-)

I'm going to be starting a forum for javascript at my site very soon. I'll be sure to post it here once I get the forum up.

-sridhar

Anon

OKAY...here goes... On my PHP-DRIVEN website :-) I have input fields where the visitor types quantities. The "grand total" instantly updates as soon as the visitor keys in the quantity. At the top of my page, I have the function:
<script>
function updateTotal(number,type,caller) {
...code in here
}
</script>
and then, in the main part of my page, where the visitor types quantities, my input boxes look like this:
<INPUT name='blahblah' size=2 value=2
onKeyUp='updateTotal("12345","something",this);'
onChange='updateTotal("12345","somethingelse",this)'>

The problem, is that in Netscape 4, when any textarea has the "focus" that browser suspends all scripts until focus is lost -- meaning that the visitor has to click "somewhere else" on the page to get the grand total to update.

What are the workarounds???

Here is a possible train-of-thought
1.) Is there a way that I can have a Javascript running in the
background that will "blur" and "focus" all the textareas a thousand
times a second, so that when the visitor types in a quantity, it will
"blur" (thus, causing my "function updateTotal()" to kick in, and then
"focus" back into the textarea so that the visitor won't even know this
is all happening?
2.) If this is possible, what is the code, and [important!] how and
where do I incorporate the code. I'm not a JS expert (yet, ha ha), and I
need a little help when it comes to syntax. So, if you could be specific
with where the code goes, the correct punctuation, etc.

Thank you!!!

p.s. By the way, I know the, "real" answer to this question is to have my visitors UPGRADE their browser.... but that's not the point. This, to me, is a puzzle which I've been wrestling with for a year now!! :-)

theslinky

Clide,

This is what you do:

write your textbox tag like this:

So this will call an update timer when focused and stop the timer (so it doesn't run forever unnecessarily) when it's blurred.

here are the functions:

function startUpdate() {
setTimeout('updateTotal', 10);
}

function stopUpdate() {
clearTimeout('updateTotal()');
}

function updateTotal() {
// do not take arguments from the (). instead define them here:
number = "12345";
type = "lalala";
caller = document.form.textfield;
}

so basically when you enter the textfield, it will set off a timer to call updateTotal() every ten milliseconds. but when you move out of the object, you don't need to timer anymore. so you use clearTimeout.

i hope this helps! if it doesn't work and you can't figure it out, i'll write you a sample code later today.

-sridhar

Anon

It doesn't work. However, I must point out that my original function, "update total," absolutely cannot be changed. You said not to take arguments from the (), but the function "updateTotal" is extremely complicated, and applies to the whole list of items, and quantities which are dynamically php-generated.

So, what I did, of course, was left my function updateTotal() exactly as I had it, but added your two functions. Then, I went to one of my textareas (which the visitor will type in the quantity), and put the onfocus and onblur which you suggested. Then, I tried it in Netscape 4, and nothing at all happened when I changed the "1" (default quantity) to a different number.

This is soooo puzzling. Someone told me that an extremely small percentage of people use NN4, and I shouldn't bother with them.... but now, this is more of a "puzzle" to me, which I am sooooooo eager to solve!! Can you help some more? THANK YOU!!

Anon

I even tried this: but it doesn't work

theslinky

Clide,

I'll try out the code and let you know.

I'll probably post the code later tonight.

-sridhar

theslinky

Clive,

http://www.theslinky.com/update1.html

Do view source to see my code.

You define the arguments for updateTotal from the startTime function

it works for me in IE5/6 and NS6. it should work in ns4 as well.

-sridhar

Anon

Sorry, it did not work at all in NN4 on windows98; You have to click out of the box, back in, then click out to make it work. It didn't work at all in Netscape for the Macintosh, either. Works in Explorer, though; but so does my old code :-)

I hope you are as challenged by this as I am, and won't give up.

theslinky

Clive,

No i don't give up easily... only when I'm not interested :-)

Anyway, I did it using the method you suggested: blur and focus repeatedly.

You know why it didn't work the first way? Because netscape doesn't update the value of the textfield until you get out of focus, whereas IE updates it live as it is being changed. That's why when we were repeatedly trying to get the value, it only worked in IE but no NS.

NOW: if i did the blur/focus by using onFocus on the textfield, it will work ... not so well because the blur/focus is called obstructively. So i decided to do it at the body onLoad level.

Check it out again:

http://www.theslinky.com/update1.html

-sridhar

Anon

Interesting effect. Now, I'll try to make it work on my website.

I must say that on my NN4, the page looks like it's possessed by the devil :-)

The textareas vibrate....

But, I'll post in this thread if I can get it to work. Check back in a few minutes if you have a chance.

theslinky

if you set the update interval to match the interval at which the curson blinks (250 milliseconds).

but this would mean there will be a short delay between the time the user types in and the form element updates itself :-)... hey, but it shouldn't matter too much!

-sridhar

Anon

I'm sorry, I guess this won't work for me; Up in the <script> </script> area, you've defined the things that go in my function, "updateTotal" (the caller.value, the value, etc.), but these are not to be filled in.

For example, you have:
function startUpdate() {
updateTotal("12334", "something", document.updateform.blah);
updateID = setTimeout('startUpdate()', 10);
}
But, unfortunately, in the updateTotal part, you have 12334, something, and document.updateform.blah) I tried replacing those 3 things with what I have in my orig javascript, but then, you also have:
document.updateform.copy.value = caller.value;
but my orig. javascript already defines caller.value as something quite a bit later in the script.

In the body onload part, if the script starts running while loaded, I get js errors because nothing is defined until the visitor starts typing. then, my orig js kicks in and first queries "is it a number" (isNAN), and then defines the caller.value, etc.

Then, there may be a hundred items on my webpage, as they are php generated. Each textarea has the name assigned to it with whatever php variable has been dynamically generated.

It looks like the only way this can work is if I stick that setTimeout thing into my script.

oh well, I really appreciate your effort. I learned a bit, too. Thank you!!

theslinky

Clive,

If you don't mind, post your code (or email it to me).

I need to be able to see the rest of your code so I can somehow isolate the arguments and pass them in without problems.

-sridhar