It's very important becuase the symbol $ is used by other javascript
libraries and it can cause a conflict if you use it outside of the anonymous
function.
For example another sloppy library might have a global definition
var $ = function(){
alert('Not Cool Man!');
};
then if you tried to use jQuery
$("#mycoolapp").coolPlugin().beCool();
and yould get the alert, 'Not Cool Man!'
But jQuery doesnt stand for such sloppy nonsense so we do:
jQuery.noConflict();
and write our plugin still using $ like so:
(function($){
$.fn.coolPlugin = function(){
//do cool stuff and feel free to use $ and know
// it means jQuery and not the lame alert function
//declared globally by sloppy library X
}
})(jQuery);
On Wed, Oct 15, 2008 at 9:09 AM, Mike Alsup <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > Plugins are supposed to use this:
> >
> > (function($) {
> > // Plugin code
> >
> > }) (jQuery)
> >
> > I know what it does (allows the use of $ within the script), but how
> > does it actually work? Is it somehow casting the function object as
> > the jQuery object? It always seemed odd to me, and I haven't seen this
> > idiom elsewhere.
>
> Consider this bit of code:
>
> // declare a function that accepts an argument
> var myFn = function(myParam) {
> // inside here I can use myParam freely
> };
> // call the function and pass an argument
> myFn(3);
>
>
> Now, change what you call the parameter name and what you pass to the
> function
>
> var myFn = function($) {
> // inside here I can use $ freely
> };
> // call the function and pass jQuery as the argument
> myFn(jQuery);
>
>
> Now do it all in one step, as an anonymous function:
>
> (function($) {
> // inside here I can use myParam freely
> })(jQuery);
>
>
>
>
>
--
Christopher Thatcher
