Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you must include 'javascript:' in an onclick event?

It's important to note that the protocol is not necessary in an onclick event:

onclick="javascript:myFunction()"
Avoid

onclick="myFunction()" Recommended

I recently came across an interesting article on Google Analytics which highlighted their use of it:

<a href="http://www.example.com" onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/example.com');">

Is this example incorrect or are there specific cases where specifying javascript: is required outside of a href?

Answer №1

There are claims within this thread suggesting that the "javascript:" prefix is considered a remnant from the past, hinting that it may be intentionally designed to be handled by browsers for backward compatibility. Is there concrete evidence supporting this theory? Has anyone delved into the source code to confirm?

<span onclick="javascript:alert(42)">Test</span>

To me, it appears as simply:

javascript:
    alert(42);

This suggests that "javascript:" acts purely as a label and does not impact functionality. This alternative approach also demonstrates the same concept:

<span onclick="foobar:alert(42)">Test</span>

Update:

Upon conducting a small experiment, it has been discovered that while "javascript:" is treated uniquely by IE, other major browsers like Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Chrome do not exhibit the same behavior:

<span onclick="javascript:while (true) { alert('once'); break javascript; }">Test</span>

In non-IE browsers, the script will display "once" once and exit the loop. However, in IE, an error message stating "Label not found" is encountered. Conversely, the following script functions correctly across all browsers:

<span onclick="foo:while (true) { alert('once'); break foo; }">Test</span>

Update 2:

It has come to light that the referenced link mentioned in a previous response touches upon a similar topic.

Answer №2

Using unnecessary code on anchor elements is not recommended and goes against good practices. Anchors should be strictly used for navigation purposes. For further reading on this subject, check out The useless JavaScript: pseudo-protocol.

Answer №3

Back in the early days, developers had the option to utilize VBScript in Internet Explorer as an alternative to JavaScript, making "javascript: ..." a common practice.

Although unnecessary now, it's worth keeping in mind that new browser scripting languages may emerge down the line.

Answer №4

In my opinion, using JavaScript within a URL with the "javascript:" prefix is not a good practice. For example:

<a href="javascript:void(alert('this is not recommended'))">

(Think about Web Forms, for instance.)

It seems that only inexperienced web developers who confuse event-declarations with href-declarations tend to use this method.

I believe that even event-attributes are considered outdated in today's web development practices. It's better to attach events using .attachEvent (for Internet Explorer) and addEventListener (for other browsers).

And remember, Google isn't always infallible. Their focus is often on functionality rather than strict adherence to standards.

Answer №6

Back in the day, including the "javascript:" prefix was a common practice just in case something other than JavaScript was responsible for handling events.

In today's world, it is no longer required and is only kept for backward compatibility. I wouldn't necessarily call it problematic, just superfluous.

Answer №7

Back in the early days of Internet Explorer, there was talk of setting VBScript as the default language for web pages. However, despite the speculation about alternative scripting languages emerging, nothing substantial has come to fruition.

Personally, I don't find the need to use this language prefix.

Answer №8

Ensuring proper coding practices is imperative for the long-term maintainability of your software. While seasoned programmers may easily spot the difference, newer developers may require additional guidance.

Similar questions

If you have not found the answer to your question or you are interested in this topic, then look at other similar questions below or use the search

Place an element that exceeds 100% in size at the center

How can I center an image that is larger than its parent element? I have set the min-width and min-height to 100% so that the picture will always fill up the parent element. The issue arises when the image does not match the proportions of the parent elem ...

Tips for halting the movement of marquee text once it reaches the center briefly before resuming animation

Is there a way to make text slide in, pause when centered, and then repeat the process? I'm looking for some help with this animation. Here is the code snippet: <marquee direction="left" id="artistslide"> <span id="currentartist">< ...

Having trouble with the $.post method not loading my PHP file in my

I followed a tutorial on YouTube to copy the code, adjusted the database connection and SELECT items to fit my existing DB, but I'm struggling to get the JS file to load the PHP file. When I use Chrome's "inspect" tool, it shows that the JS file ...

Assigning the variable "name" attribute to an <input> element in HTML: A step-by-step guide

In the image below, I am working on creating a user interface using JSP and loops. I am looking to assign unique names to each input element to differentiate them. To achieve this, I plan to give them variable name attributes which I can set and populate ...

Large data sets may cause the Highchart Bar to not display properly

Currently, I am working on a web project that displays traffic usage in chart mode using Highchart Bar. The issue I am facing is that there are no errors thrown when running this code. <script type="text/javascript"> $(function () { $(&apos ...

Develop and share a function to be assessed within a different scope's context in JavaScript

Currently, I'm exploring the use of angular and bootstrap tour and I have a challenge in trying to isolate objects within their own area without storing them in the controller. My goal is to store an object in the service, which also contains function ...

Attempting to initiate a CSS animation by clicking a button using JavaScript

I'm having trouble getting a CSS animation to trigger with a button press using Javascript. I've gone through various questions and answers, but nothing seems to work. My code looks like it should do the trick -- what am I missing? When I click t ...

Disable the smooth scroll animation when transitioning between pages using the Link component in NextJS

Not sure if this is a new feature of Next.js, as I didn't encounter this issue in my previous Next.js project. When I reach the bottom of a page and try to navigate to another page, a scroll-to-top animation appears on the destination page. I want to ...

Tips for updating an anchor link within a Textarea using jQuery

I have a simple inquiry about jQuery. I am interested in changing the "a" tag within a Textarea. I understand that "a" tags do not work within a textarea, which makes it impossible to target them with jQuery selectors. For example: <textarea><a ...

Fixing the problem of digest overflow in AngularJS

I've been working on a code to display a random number in my view, but I keep encountering the following error message: Error: [$rootScope:infdig] 10 $digest() iterations reached. Aborting! It seems to be related to a digest outflow issue, and I&apo ...

What makes this CSS causing render blocking?

I've been meticulously following the Google PageSpeed guidelines in order to optimize the performance of my website. Upon running an analysis, Google provides me with a score based on their set guidelines. There's one particular guideline that ...

chaotic telerik editor arrangement

I have incorporated the Rad Editor into my ASP.NET page. <asp:ScriptManager ID="ScriptManager1" runat="server"> </asp:ScriptManager> <telerik:RadEditor ID="reSummery" runat="server" > </telerik:RadEditor> Despite not referencing ...

Using jQuery effects on your PHP message to give it an interactive touch - here's how!

For some time now, my website has had a straightforward PHP message system that worked well, storing data into MySQL with each message having a unique ID. Recently, out of the blue, I decided to enhance the system by adding jQuery effects for sending and d ...

Setting up internationalization (i18n) in JavaScript

I am in the process of creating a dynamic webpage using i18n's JavaScript library. I have been following their example code from their homepage located at: However, I am encountering difficulties in loading the specified JSON data, despite adhering t ...

Steps for creating a personalized query or route in feathersjs

I'm feeling a bit lost and confused while trying to navigate through the documentation. This is my first time using feathersjs and I am slowly getting the hang of it. Let's say I can create a /messages route using a service generator to GET all ...

Issue: Unable to find suitable routes for navigation. URL Segment: 'profile' or Encounter: Server could not load resource as response status is 401 (Unauthorized)

Currently, I am working on the MEANAUTH application and encountering an issue with accessing user profiles using angular jwt. When attempting to log in and access user profiles at https://localhost:3000/profile, I receive the following error message: Faile ...

"Step-by-step guide on setting up routing in React using Redux for navigating to and from the root file (index

I am working on a React server webpage and I am trying to set up redirects from index.js (localhost:3000) to the Login page (localhost:3000/login), and from login back to index in case of a failed login attempt. Can you help me with what code I need to inc ...

React Alert: Please be advised that whitespace text nodes are not allowed as children of <tr> elements

Currently, I am encountering an error message regarding the spaces left in . Despite my efforts to search for a solution on Stack Overflow, I have been unable to find one because my project does not contain any or table elements due to it being built with ...

What is the best way to hide a div when an image is positioned on top of it?

Previously, I inquired about creating a "cursor mirror" where the movement of the cursor in the top section of a website would be mirrored in the opposite direction in the bottom section. You can find the original question here. Expanding on that concept, ...

Error: Failed to retrieve the name property of an undefined value within the Array.forEach method

Upon pressing the button to display the task pane, I encountered an error message in the console window that reads: "Uncaught (in promise) TypeError: Cannot read property 'name' of undefined". This error persists and I am unable to resolve or com ...