XMLHttpRequest to fetch a specific div

[broughcut]

Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

I was going to use Ajax on mouseover but keep the normal link intact,
so that if the user does not have javascript they can click the link
as normal and this would take them to the new page, but if they have
javascript (and ActiveX enabled I guess, in the case of IE) it would
just fetch the appropriate div into the current page. This would save
having to duplicate content so that it can be served by Ajax.

Of course, changing content on mouseover could annoy many users... is
there a way to change a link location using DOM on page load, as you
might a class name?

eg an onload function changes <li id="product1">< a
href="product1. html".... to <li id="product1">< a href="#", so that the
XMLHttpRequest can be moved to an onlick event--but if there is no
javascript present, the hard link would remain intact.

thanks for any pointers!

[Randy Webb]

br*******@gmail .com said the following on 2/20/2007 6:03 AM:

Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

No.

I was going to use Ajax on mouseover but keep the normal link intact,
so that if the user does not have javascript they can click the link
as normal and this would take them to the new page, but if they have
javascript (and ActiveX enabled I guess, in the case of IE) it would
just fetch the appropriate div into the current page. This would save
having to duplicate content so that it can be served by Ajax.

I love it when people want to use "Ajax" so they can say "we use Ajax".

Of course, changing content on mouseover could annoy many users... is
there a way to change a link location using DOM on page load, as you
might a class name?

Yes, but why?

eg an onload function changes <li id="product1">< a
href="product1. html".... to <li id="product1">< a href="#", so that the
XMLHttpRequest can be moved to an onlick event--but if there is no
javascript present, the hard link would remain intact.

That is one crazy idea you have there. Why not:

<a href="product1. html" onclick="someAJ AXFunction();re turn
false">Product</a>

End of problem.

--
Randy
Chance Favors The Prepared Mind
comp.lang.javas cript FAQ - http://jibbering.com/faq/index.html
Javascript Best Practices - http://www.JavascriptToolbox.com/bestpractices/

[broughcut]

modified some existing code... think it's nearly there, but where am I
falling down?

var XMLHttpRequestO bject = false;

if (window.XMLHttp Request) {
XMLHttpRequestO bject = new XMLHttpRequest( );
} else if (window.ActiveX Object) {
XMLHttpRequestO bject = new ActiveXObject(" Microsoft.XMLHT TP");
}

function getData(fetchdi v, targetdiv)
{
if(XMLHttpReque stObject) {
var obj = document.getEle mentById(target div);
XMLHttpRequestO bject.open("GET ", fetchdiv);
XMLHttpRequestO bject.onreadyst atechange = function()
{
if (XMLHttpRequest Object.readySta te == 4 &&
XMLHttpRequestO bject.status == 200) {
obj.innerHTML =
XMLHttpRequestO bject.responseX ML.getElementBy Id('div2')

}
}

XMLHttpRequestO bject.send(null );
}
}

[broughcut]

On 20 Feb, 06:10, Randy Webb <HikksNotAtH... @aol.comwrote:

brough...@gmail .com said the following on 2/20/2007 6:03 AM:

Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

No.

It appears to be possible to process an XML file fetched using
XMLHttpRequest and extract specific data, so I think this should be
able to be applied to a html document in order to extract the contents
of one div.

That is one crazy idea you have there. Why not:

<a href="product1. html" onclick="someAJ AXFunction();re turn
false">Product</a>

End of problem.

Ah ha! So it doesn't follow the link.

How do you add return false to mouse events that are in an external
script? eg:

var nav = document.getEle mentById('test' ).getElementsBy TagName('a');
for (var i=0;i<nav.lengt h;i++)
{
nav[i].onmousedown = someAJAXFunctio n;
}

I've had a play but "someAJAXFuncti on;return false" doesn't seem to
work.

[broughcut]

I love it when people want to use "Ajax" so they can say "we use Ajax".

Ajax is dreamy.

[broughcut]

OK I don't think it's convenient to do this using responseXML as the
xhtml document would need to be marked up with the XML namespace and
wouldn't validate (?) as well as a host of other complications.

a better solution from an old thread on this subject:

On 22 Jun 2002, 08:30, "Joe Fawcett" <j...@rightway. co.ukwrote:

1) Parse the responseText property using traditional string processing
techniques, regular expressions etc. to retrieve the text in the div with id
equal to 'Descriptions'

this should be very simple to do... can anyone help me out? a html
page fetched using responseText displays correctly, so this technique
should work?

[=?ISO-8859-1?Q?Une_B=E9vue?=]

<br*******@gmai l.comwrote:

Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

either using xslt or innerHTML...
--
Une Bévue

[shimmyshack]

On Feb 20, 6:43 pm, unbewusst.s...@ google.com.inva lid (Une Bévue)
wrote:

<brough...@gmai l.comwrote:

Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

either using xslt or innerHTML...
--
Une Bévue

depending on whether you and your users have too much bandwidth, or
you have spare server CPU, you could use XHR to bring back a page and
use jQuery or some such to parse through it using javascript in the
client for a specific section of the xmlDOM, or you could write a
proxy script using python or php (the simpleXML functions are very
useful) which would take the request and send back only the content
reuired.
Both ways would mean you wouldn't have to duplicate content. The 2nd
method would be extrememly fast and would not require that your users
had spare CPU and fast internet.

li id="product1">< a
href="product1. html".... to <li id="product1">< a href="#", so that the
XMLHttpRequest can be moved to an onlick event--but if there is no
javascript present, the hard link would remain intact.

Your method of actually changing the href is not needed, as Randy
showed, however his method of adding extra markup in the html is also
not the best way out, instead look into using one of the many
libraries out there which use reg expressions to parse your markup and
attach an onclick dynamically to any given tag, class, or id. These
classes are fast, and are unobtrusive javascript, ie, javascript that
is only present in the DOM if the user agent requests it. Adding extra
markup makes it harder to maintain your xhtml, and causes
accessibility validation issues, and leaves you less time to be polite
to others.

[broughcut]

On 20 Feb, 13:08, "shimmyshac k" <matt.fa...@gma il.comwrote:

Your method of actually changing the href is not needed, as Randy
showed, however his method of adding extra markup in the html is also
not the best way out, instead look into using one of the many
libraries out there which use reg expressions to parse your markup and
attach an onclick dynamically to any given tag, class, or id. These
classes are fast, and are unobtrusive javascript, ie, javascript that
is only present in the DOM if the user agent requests it. Adding extra
markup makes it harder to maintain your xhtml, and causes
accessibility validation issues, and leaves you less time to be polite
to others.

Thanks for all the info, little out of my depth but I'm looking into
it.

as for adding onclicks dynamically, is
{
var nav = document.getEle mentById('conta ctform')
nav.onclick = openform;
}

(which doesn't seem to work with .getElementsByT agName('a') appended?)

preferable to:
var nav =
document.getEle mentById('conta ctform').getEle mentsByTagName( 'a');
for (var i=0;i<nav.lengt h;i++)
{
nav[i].onmousedown = openform;
}

or is there no real difference? Does the latter consume more cpu due
to the loop?

excuse all the thick questions.

[Randy Webb]

Une Bévue said the following on 2/20/2007 1:43 PM:

<br*******@gmai l.comwrote:

>Is it possible to fetch a specific div from a source html document
using XMLHttpRequest, rather than fetching the entire file?

either using xslt or innerHTML...

Neither of which can retrieve a specific div from a source html document
without retrieving the entire document.

--
Randy
Chance Favors The Prepared Mind
comp.lang.javas cript FAQ - http://jibbering.com/faq/index.html
Javascript Best Practices - http://www.JavascriptToolbox.com/bestpractices/