jQuery (newb) Why is my alert popping up on EVERY load ??

[mOrloff]

I need to throw an alert conditionally, but it's throwing every time.
This is my first attempt at jQuery, and I'm excited to finally be playing with it.
(Every year I promise myself I'll get more familiar with JS, and I have yet to follow through ... so I'm trying to do something about it :-)

I'm throwing together a page where contenteditable=true if a validated key gets passed.
Here's the basics of my simple PHP:

PHP Code:

if(!empty($_GET['editkey'])){
    $secretOfTime = $_GET['editkey'];
    if($secretOfTime == md5(round($timestamp, -1)) || $secretOfTime == md5(round(($timestamp-3), -1))){
        //match
        $editable = 'contenteditable="true"';
        $notValidated = '';
    }else{
        //no match
        $editable = '';
        $notValidated = '<span id="editModeFailedToValidate"></span>';
    }
} 


And here's my JS:

<script type="text/javascript">
    $(document.getElementById('editModeFailedToValidate')).ready(function() {
            alert('The Edit-Key did not match, Please try again.');
    });
</script>

It throws the alert regardless of whether the 'editModeFailedToValidate' ID is found.

I even tested with getElementById('someNonsenseTestValue'), and it still gave the alert.

Am I going about this all wrong, or do I just need some little tweaks?

~ Mo

[DanInMa]

<script type="text/javascript">
    $(document).ready(function() {
if ($("#editModeFailedToValidate")){
            alert('The Edit-Key did not match, Please try again.');
}
    });
</script>

[mOrloff]

Very cool, thank you.
So, can I ALWAYS use the hash in place of getElementBtId ??
That's a nice little shortcut.

~ Mo

[VIPStephan]

Originally Posted by mOrloff

So, can I ALWAYS use the hash in place of getElementBtId ??
That's a nice little shortcut.

Haha, that kinda makes me laugh because in my perception this is the first thing one notices about jQuery. You can use any CSS selector in the dollar function to address elements, and even more that aren’t part of CSS:
http://api.jquery.com/category/selectors/

[mOrloff]

It's still throwing the alert regardless.
Even when I try if ($("#someNonsenseTestValue")).

I did a hard-refresh to make sure it's not a caching issue, and verified in the page source that your improved code is in fact what's being used.

Other thoughts??
~ Mo

[mOrloff]

Originally Posted by VIPStephan

Haha, that kinda makes me laugh ...

I do what I can to make people happy
~

[SB65]

Try:

<script type="text/javascript">
    $(document).ready(function() {
if ($("#editModeFailedToValidate").length>0){
            alert('The Edit-Key did not match, Please try again.');
}
    });
</script>

I think I'm right in saying jQuery always returns a selector object regardless of whether a match is found - so if($("#editModeFailedToValidate")) will always return true. Adding the .length property will evaluate the object and its result can then be tested.

[mOrloff]

Excellent!!
That did it.
Thanks.

~ Mo

[DanInMa]

ok im embarrassed. I could have sworn you didnt have to do it by length, but I was wrong.