attachEvent Method

Binds the specified function to an event that fires on the object when the function is called.

Syntax

bSuccess = object.attachEvent(sEvent, fpNotify)

Parameters

sEvent	Required. String that specifies any of the standard DHTML events.
fpNotify	Required. Pointer that specifies the function to be called when sEvent fires.

Return Value

Boolean. Returns true if the function is bound successfully to the event, or false otherwise.

Remarks

When sEvent fires on the object, the object's sEvent handler is called before fpNotify, the specified function. If you attach multiple functions to the same event on the same object, the functions are called in random order, immediately after the object's event handler is called.

The attachEvent method enables a behavior to handle events that occur on the containing page. This method is not limited, however, to behaviors. You can also define a function on a page that attaches to events fired on the same page.

Behaviors that attach to events using the attachEvent method must explicitly call the detachEvent method to stop receiving notifications from the page when the ondetach event fires. A behavior that attaches to events on the page using the HTML Components (HTC) ATTACH element automatically stops receiving notifications when the behavior detaches from the element, and does not need to call the detachEvent method.

Example

This example shows how to implement a mouseover highlighting effect by calling the attachEvent method from an HTC.

Sample Code

<PUBLIC:ATTACH EVENT="ondetach" ONEVENT="cleanup()" />

<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JScript">
attachEvent ('onmouseover', Hilite);
attachEvent ('onmouseout', Restore);

function cleanup()
{
   detachEvent ('onmouseover', Hilite);
   detachEvent ('onmouseout', Restore);
}

function Hilite()
{
   if (event.srcElement == element)
   { 
     normalColor = style.color;  
     runtimeStyle.color  = "red";
     runtimeStyle.cursor = "hand";
   }
}

function Restore()
{
   if (event.srcElement == element)
   {
      runtimeStyle.color  = normalColor;
      runtimeStyle.cursor = "";
   }
}
</SCRIPT>

This feature requires Internet Explorer 5 or later. Click the icon below to install the latest version. Then reload this page to view the sample.

Applies To

[ Object Name ] Platform Version Win16: Win32: Mac: Unix: WinCE: Version data is listed when the mouse hovers over a link, or the link has focus.

A, ACRONYM, ADDRESS, APPLET, AREA, B, BASE, BASEFONT, BGSOUND, BIG, BLOCKQUOTE, BODY, BR, BUTTON, CAPTION, CENTER, CITE, CODE, COL, COLGROUP, COMMENT, custom, DD, DEL, DFN, DIR, DIV, DL, document, DT, EM, EMBED, FIELDSET, FONT, FORM, FRAME, FRAMESET, HEAD, Hn, HR, HTML, I, IFRAME, IMG, INPUT type=button, INPUT type=checkbox, INPUT type=file, INPUT type=hidden, INPUT type=image, INPUT type=password, INPUT type=radio, INPUT type=reset, INPUT type=submit, INPUT type=text, INS, KBD, LABEL, LEGEND, LI, LINK, LISTING, MAP, MARQUEE, MENU, NOBR, OBJECT, OL, OPTION, P, PLAINTEXT, PRE, Q, S, SAMP, SCRIPT, SELECT, SMALL, SPAN, STRIKE, STRONG, SUB, SUP, TABLE, TBODY, TD, TEXTAREA, TFOOT, TH, THEAD, TITLE, TR, TT, U, UL, VAR, window, XMP

See Also

detachEvent, DHTML Behaviors, Using DHTML Behaviors, Implementing DHTML Behaviors in Script