[RESOLVED] including JScripts *disables* the browser?

[RESOLVED] including JScripts disables the browser?

dalecosp

I've got a page that validates XHTML Strict, but when I include a tag like this:

<script src="includes/javascript/validate.js" />

I get no visual output in FF or IE. However, "view source" gives me complete source code. It's the darndest thing I ever saw (well, at least this month 😛). Commenting the tag out:

<!--script src="includes/javascript/validate.js" /-->

gives me a perfectly normal looking page ... but without any JS capability.

JS works fine in my browsers on other pages.

Only other clue: FF "highlights" the HTML source, and it all goes "black" instead of highlighted in color after the first <script> tag. However, I see no errors in the Javascripts ... which are attached (and one is stolen from an excellent post by johanafm earlier today).

johanafm

That's because the valid markup for script elements, even in xhtml, is <script ...></script> and not <script .../>.

You will also need to fix one minor issue.

<script type="text/javascript">
window.onload = externLinks;	// This is a function reference - the correct way

window.onload = externLinks();	// This won't work
</script>
</head>
<!-- However, here you use a function call rather than a function reference -->
<body onload="externLinks();">

dalecosp

johanafm;10973716 wrote:
That's because the valid markup for script elements, even in xhtml, is <script ...></script> and not <script .../>.

Thanks very much, Johan. 🙂

Now, to get out from behind this proxy and see if it actually works 😃

dalecosp

And it did, Yay! After I fixed a couple other things about them ... for example, (and I already knew, but I go stupid when Javascript shows up in my editor) that you shouldn't have script tags in scripts that are sourced from a script tag 😛

Johan, the form validation script works well except for one thing. The form still gets submitted to the server. Any thoughts on that?

dalecosp

FWIW, future reference, and the search engines:

Don't put the handler call in the form tag as "onSubmit". Instead, do this or something similar:

<input type="submit" name="sign_up" value="Sign me up as an OMBE Link-Partner!"
            onclick="var f=document.forms['form_name'];if (checkRequired(f)){f.submit();}return false;" />

johanafm

You can indeed use the forms onsubmit handler for this, and in my opinion you really should. It's what it's there for. However, you must make the event handler return the value of the function call

<form onsubmit="return f();">

Which of course also means f must return a proper value (false to prevent form submit, non-false to allow it).

In the same way, you could use the onclick handler for the submit button to stop event propagation.

<input type="submit" onclick="return f();" />

In my opinion it doesn't really matter wether you use submit buttons' onclick or forms' onsubmit handler, but stay consistent.

Also, iirc, it is necessary (or was in some browser(s)) to include the trailing ; for this to work. All I do know for sure is that it's not presently required by FF. But if things don't work as they should, check that it's: onsubmit="return f();" rather than onsubmit="return f()"