Why is the AJAX-generated HTML not being refreshed in the DOM?

Question

Why is the AJAX-generated HTML not being refreshed in the DOM?

When I load HTML content via AJAX onto a div using Mootools 1.11 and squeezebox, everything works perfectly in Firefox. However, when I try to load it in Internet Explorer (tested on IE7), the code fails with an error message stating "'null' is null or not an object." Upon further investigation, I discovered that the new elements loaded by AJAX are not being recognized in the IE DOM. For example, when I tried running document.getElementById('test'), it returned null for a div with id 'test' that was just loaded.

Has anyone encountered this issue before and found a solution or workaround?

Additional information: I placed my script inside the window's 'domready' event. I also attempted to use the 'load' event, but IE never triggered it.

UPDATE
After testing the script in IE8 with its improved debugging capabilities, it appears that the issue lies in the timing of the script execution. The code runs during the window's domReady event, but it executes almost immediately without waiting for the entire DOM to be ready within the popup window. When running the same script using a debugger after the page has fully loaded, the elements can be located without any problems.
Therefore, the question now becomes how to ensure that the script runs at the appropriate time.

The domready event seems to fire before the DOM is actually ready
The load event doesn't seem to trigger at all
Placing the script at the end of the file, after the HTML objects, does not solve the issue either
In the Mootools AJAX options, I have set 'evalScripts' to true; otherwise, the script doesn't run at all

Any ideas on how to address this problem?

javascript ajax internet-explorer dom mootools

Answer 1

Answer №1

Internet Explorer has no problem loading elements into the dom. Additionally, there is no concept of 'domready' after updating an innerHTML property. Consider the following scenario:

new Ajax("someurl", {
    method: "get",
    evalScripts: true,
    onComplete: function() {
        $("someid").setHTML(this.response.text); // Load content.
    }
}).request();

The question arises - does evalScripts run before or after the onComplete? It seems that the script you send back must correspond to the markup used for updating.

In the source code for version 1.11, it shows:

onComplete: function(){
    if (this.options.update) $(this.options.update).empty().setHTML(this.response.text);
    if (this.options.evalScripts || this.options.evalResponse) this.evalScripts();
    this.fireEvent('onComplete', [this.response.text, this.response.xml], 20);
},

This indicates that scripts are evaluated after the update but before the onComplete. Therefore, using:

update: $('somediv'),
evalScripts: true

should work. If it doesn't, then I recommend trying:

new Ajax("someurl", {
    method: "get",
    onComplete: function() {
        $("someid").setHTML(this.response.text); // Load content.
        this.evalScripts(); 

        // Or if it still fails, delay it:
        /*
        if (window.ie)
        (function() {
            this.evalScripts();
        }).delay(100, this);
        */
    }
}).request();

Answer 2

Internet Explorer has no problem loading elements into the dom. Additionally, there is no concept of 'domready' after updating an innerHTML property. Consider the following scenario:

new Ajax("someurl", {
    method: "get",
    evalScripts: true,
    onComplete: function() {
        $("someid").setHTML(this.response.text); // Load content.
    }
}).request();

The question arises - does evalScripts run before or after the onComplete? It seems that the script you send back must correspond to the markup used for updating.

In the source code for version 1.11, it shows:

onComplete: function(){
    if (this.options.update) $(this.options.update).empty().setHTML(this.response.text);
    if (this.options.evalScripts || this.options.evalResponse) this.evalScripts();
    this.fireEvent('onComplete', [this.response.text, this.response.xml], 20);
},

This indicates that scripts are evaluated after the update but before the onComplete. Therefore, using:

update: $('somediv'),
evalScripts: true

should work. If it doesn't, then I recommend trying:

new Ajax("someurl", {
    method: "get",
    onComplete: function() {
        $("someid").setHTML(this.response.text); // Load content.
        this.evalScripts(); 

        // Or if it still fails, delay it:
        /*
        if (window.ie)
        (function() {
            this.evalScripts();
        }).delay(100, this);
        */
    }
}).request();

Answer 3

Answer №2

If you're encountering issues, consider running tests on IE8 and utilizing the IE Web Developer tools to uncover any potential errors.

Alternatively, you might want to utilize a plugin for IE7, although it has been optimized for IE8.

This approach will provide you with greater insight into the problem, allowing us to assist you more effectively once the issue is identified.

Answer 4

If you're encountering issues, consider running tests on IE8 and utilizing the IE Web Developer tools to uncover any potential errors.

Alternatively, you might want to utilize a plugin for IE7, although it has been optimized for IE8.

This approach will provide you with greater insight into the problem, allowing us to assist you more effectively once the issue is identified.

Answer 5

Answer №3

Consider these testing suggestions: - Have you experimented with traditional xmlHttpRequest techniques to determine if it functions without using frameworks? - Verify your document's DOCTYPE; there may be HTML/XML content type complications that only impact IE. - Are you certain that the object you are attempting to manipulate exists before accessing it? FF performs significantly faster than IE. - Have you explored other AJAX methods or DOM manipulations to see if the issue is more general? - Have you reviewed the validity of your HTML? It is possible that there are some improperly formatted elements that FF can interpret but IE cannot.

Answer 6

Consider these testing suggestions: - Have you experimented with traditional xmlHttpRequest techniques to determine if it functions without using frameworks? - Verify your document's DOCTYPE; there may be HTML/XML content type complications that only impact IE. - Are you certain that the object you are attempting to manipulate exists before accessing it? FF performs significantly faster than IE. - Have you explored other AJAX methods or DOM manipulations to see if the issue is more general? - Have you reviewed the validity of your HTML? It is possible that there are some improperly formatted elements that FF can interpret but IE cannot.

Answer 7

Answer №4

Just wanted to share a Prototype version of Dimitar Christoff's response with you:

new Ajax.Request('someurl', {
  parameters: param,
  onComplete: function(transport) {
    /* execute embedded scripts first */
    transport.responseText.evalScripts();

    /* continue with the rest of the onComplete code */
    /* ... */
  }
});

By doing this, it ensures that any scripts included in the response are evaluated before proceeding with the remaining parts of the onComplete callback, which is not the default behavior before Prototype 1.7.1.

Answer 8

Just wanted to share a Prototype version of Dimitar Christoff's response with you:

new Ajax.Request('someurl', {
  parameters: param,
  onComplete: function(transport) {
    /* execute embedded scripts first */
    transport.responseText.evalScripts();

    /* continue with the rest of the onComplete code */
    /* ... */
  }
});

By doing this, it ensures that any scripts included in the response are evaluated before proceeding with the remaining parts of the onComplete callback, which is not the default behavior before Prototype 1.7.1.

Answer 9

Answer №5

It seems like there could be some version compatibility issues at play here - the current squeezebox now requires mootools 1.2 and may not utilize setHTML as it did before (refer to this resource for a similar tool's struggles with it). Have you verified that your squeezebox and mootools versions are compatible with each other, as well as fully supporting Internet Explorer? Upgrading both to the latest releases might just solve your issue (definitely worth trying)!

Answer 10

It seems like there could be some version compatibility issues at play here - the current squeezebox now requires mootools 1.2 and may not utilize setHTML as it did before (refer to this resource for a similar tool's struggles with it). Have you verified that your squeezebox and mootools versions are compatible with each other, as well as fully supporting Internet Explorer? Upgrading both to the latest releases might just solve your issue (definitely worth trying)!

Why is the AJAX-generated HTML not being refreshed in the DOM?

Answer №1

Answer №2

Answer №3

Answer №4

Answer №5

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