A Google search for “internet explorer invalid argument” brought me to this page, Internet Explorer Sucks.  Fortunately the author had run into this problem and figured out the solution.

It turns out In Internet Explorer, the second argument to the JavaScript window.open method, which is the windowName argument, can’t have spaces. My original link looked like this.

<a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="window.open('popUp.jsp','Frank Kim betweenGo','menubar=0,toolbar=0,location=0,scrollbars=yes,width=400,height=175')">What's this?</a>

When I took out the spaces from the windowName argument the link worked.  You would think Internet Explorer 8 would have fixed this issue by now, it doesn’t affect any other modern web browser.

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This is how typically JavaScript and HTML mix.  For example in submitting a form using a text link.

<a href="javascript:submit(document.testForm)">Submit</a>

Or for jumping to different parts of a page using a dropdown.

 <input type="image" src="/img/buttons/update.gif"
   onClick="window.location.hash=
document.jumpTo.names.options[document.jumpTo.names.selectedIndex].value">

Using the unobtrusive JavaScript technique one can separate the JavaScript from the HTML.

<div id="foo">Submit</div>

<script type="text/javascript">
 Event.observe($('foo'), 'click', function(event) {
   $(Event.element(event)).form.submit();
   return false;
 });
</script>

We use the Protoculous JavaScript file which combines the Prototype framework and Scriptaculous libraries to do unobtrusive JavaScript.

Related posts:

1. Submitting an ATG Form Using a Text Link
2. Submitting a form with a radio button
3. Jumping to different parts of a page using a dropdown

(Photo: Nouveau Variation by Syntopia)

I find the undefined keyword and identity operators (=== and !==) in JavaScript pretty useful.  For example if I am parsing a JSON input and I am not sure if something is there or not I test it like this.

if (root.Foo === undefined)

If I want to test if something is defined I do it like this.

if (root.Bar !== undefined)

saladwithsteve explains it well in his JavaScript undefined vs. null post.

Update 12-14-2009: Unfortunately the above method did not work for testing a variable directly.  I ended up following the advice of this post, Javascript IsDefined Function.  To test if a variable is defined I now do this.

if (typeof(foo) != "undefined")

Related posts:

1. user-defined property type gotcha’s
2. Submitting a form with a radio button
3. Submitting an ATG Form Using a Text Link

First create the dropdown.

<form name="jumpTo" action=".">
  <dspel:droplet name="/atg/dynamo/droplet/ForEach">
    <dspel:param name="array" param="categories"/>
    <dspel:setvalue param="category" paramvalue="element"/>
    <dspel:oparam name="outputStart">
      <select name="names">
    </dspel:oparam>
    <dspel:oparam name="output">
      <dspel:getvalueof id="index" param="index"/>
      <c:set var="catShortName" value="cat${index}"/>
      <option value="<c:out value="${catShortName}"/>">
        <dspel:valueof param="category.name"/>
      </option>
    </dspel:oparam>
    <dspel:oparam name="outputEnd">
      </select>
    </dspel:oparam>
  </dspel:droplet>
</form>

Next create the button outside of the form for jumping to different parts of the page. I learned about the window.location.hash from this article. And I learned about how to access the selected value from the dropdown from this article.

 <input type="image" src="/img/buttons/update.gif"
   onClick="window.location.hash=
document.jumpTo.names.options[document.jumpTo.names.selectedIndex].value">

Finally you create the name anchors throughout your document.

<dspel:droplet name="/atg/dynamo/droplet/ForEach">
  <dspel:param name="array" param="categories"/>
  <dspel:setvalue param="category" paramvalue="element"/>
  <dspel:oparam name="output">

    <%-- magazine category --%>
    <dspel:getvalueof id="index" param="index"/>
    <c:set var="catShortName" value="cat${index}"/>
    <a name="<c:out value="${catShortName}"/>"
       id="<c:out value="${catShortName}"/>">
      <dspel:valueof param="category.name"/>
    </a>

  </dspel:oparam>
</dspel:droplet>

Related posts:

1. Comparison of DSP and DSPEL
2. Unobtrusive JavaScript
3. ATG ForEach Output with Separators Between Items

Below is a simple example of how to do it. The trick is the hidden submit input which triggers ATG to call the handleSubmit method of the form handler.

<%@ taglib uri="/dspTaglib" prefix="dsp"%>

<dsp:page>

<script>
  function submit(form) {
    form.submit();
  }
</script>

<dsp:form action="<%=request.getRequestURI()%>" method="post" name="testForm">

  Foo: <dsp:input type="text" bean="TestFormHandler.foo"/>

  <p><a href="javascript:submit(document.testForm)">Submit</a>

  <dsp:input type="hidden" bean="TestFormHandler.submit" value="Submit"/>

</dsp:form>

</dsp:page>

You can also invoke the JavaScript like this:

  <p><a href="#" onclick="submit(document.testForm); return false;">Submit</a>

Related posts:

1. Internet Explorer form does not invoke ATG handler
2. ATG forms do not work if action is an HTML page
3. Submitting a form with a radio button

A typical form with two radio buttons would look something like this.

<form action="test.html">
1 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="1"><br>
2 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="2">
<p><input type="submit" value="submit">
</form>

But with basic JavaScript you can make a simpler form like this.

<script>
function submitAction( form, absPath ) {
form.action = absPath;
form.submit();
}
</script>
<form action="test.html" id="test">
1 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="1" onchange="submitAction(document.getElementById('test'), 'test.html')"><br>
2 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="2" onchange="submitAction(document.getElementById('test'), 'test.html')">
</form>

If you are using Struts the above form’s JSP would be:

<html:form action="test.do" styleId="test">
1 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="1" onchange="submitAction(document.getElementById('test'), 'test.do')"><br>
2 <input type="radio" name="test" value ="2" onchange="submitAction(document.getElementById('test'), 'test.do')">
</html:form>

Related posts:

1. Submitting an ATG Form Using a Text Link
2. ATG forms do not work if action is an HTML page
3. Internet Explorer form does not invoke ATG handler