[Javascript] looping through nodeList

[Anthony Ettinger]

--- Paul Novitski <paul at novitskisoftware.com> wrote:

> At 02:15 PM 10/18/2005, Anthony Ettinger wrote:
> >How should I call function names then?
> >
> >If I run window.onload=Foo; it works,
> >
> >if I have:
> >
> >window.onload=Bar;
> >
> >function Bar()
> >{
> >     Foo;
> >}
> >
> >Foo does not get called. It only works in the 2nd
> >instance if I call it as Foo();
> >
> >What's going on here?
> 
> 
> To reiterate Mike's point:
> _____________________________
> 
> If your javascript statement is:
>          Foo;
> then you are invoking the TEXT of the function
> Foo().  This is like writing:
>          "funky";
> It doesn't do anything, it just sits there.  It's
> just an expression 
> with no verb.
> _____________________________
> 
> If you state:
>          Foo();
> then you are executing the function Foo().  In this
> case, the 
> browser's javascript interpreter performs the logic
> of the Foo() function
> _____________________________
> 
> The reason we generally write:
>          window.onload = Foo;
> and not:
>          window.onload = Foo();
> is that we want window.onload to equal the TEXT of
> function Foo(); 
> when the page finishes loading, the function text
> contained in 
> window.onload will execute.  It's an exact copy of
> your function 
> Foo() and will perform identically.
> _____________________________
> 
> 
> Rarely will you ever want to write:
> 
>          window.onload = Foo();
> 
> This would make sense only if function Foo()
> returned javscript code, 
> something like this:
> 
>          window.onload = Foo();
> 
>          function Foo()
>          {
>             return("alert('hello world')");
>          }
> 
> window.onload would then contain the script:
> 
>          alert('hello world')
> 
> which would execute when the page finished loading.
> 
> 
> Clear as mud?
> 

Great, thanks! :-D

Didn't know I could return code references.

Anthony Ettinger
ph: (408) 656-2473
web: http://www.apwebdesign.com