DOM:window

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« Gecko DOM Reference

This section provides a brief reference for all of the methods, properties, and events available through the DOM window object. The window object implements the Window interface, which in turn inherits from the AbstractView interface.

The window object represents the window itself. The document property of a window points to the DOM document loaded in that window. A window for a given document can be obtained using the document.defaultView property.

In a tabbed browser, such as Firefox, each tab contains its own window object (and if you're writing an extension, the browser window itself is a separate window too - see Working with windows in chrome code for more information). That is, the window object is not shared between tabs in the same window. Some methods, namely window.resizeTo and window.resizeBy apply to the whole window and not to the specific tab the window object belongs to. Generally, anything that can't reasonably pertain to a tab pertains to the window instead.

[edit] Properties

window.applicationCache New in Firefox 3

An nsIDOMOfflineResourceList object providing access to the offline resources for the window.

window.closed

This property indicates whether the current window is closed or not.

window.Components

The entry point to many XPCOM features. Some properties, e.g. classes, are only available to sufficiently privileged code.

window.content and window._content

Returns a reference to the content element in the current window. The variant with underscore is deprecated.

window.controllers

Returns the XUL controller objects for the current chrome window.

window.crypto

Returns the browser crypto object.

window.defaultStatus

Gets/sets the status bar text for the given window.

window.dialogArguments New in Firefox 3

Gets the arguments passed to the window (if it's a dialog box) at the time window.showModalDialog() was called. This is an nsIArray.

window.directories

Returns a reference to the directories toolbar in the current chrome.

window.document

Returns a reference to the document that the window contains.

window.frameElement

Returns the element in which the window is embedded, or null if the window is not embedded.

window.frames

Returns an array of the subframes in the current window.

window.fullScreen New in Firefox 3

This property indicates whether the window is displayed in full screen or not.

window.globalStorage New in Firefox 2

Multiple storage objects that are used for storing data across multiple pages.

window.history

Returns a reference to the history object.

window.innerHeight

Gets the height of the content area of the browser window including, if rendered, the horizontal scrollbar.

window.innerWidth

Gets the width of the content area of the browser window including, if rendered, the vertical scrollbar.

window.length

Returns the number of frames in the window.

window.location

Gets/sets the location, or current URL, of the window object.

window.locationbar

Returns the locationbar object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.menubar

Returns the menubar object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.name

Gets/sets the name of the window.

window.navigator

Returns a reference to the navigator object.

window.opener

Returns a reference to the window that opened this current window.

window.outerHeight

Gets the height of the outside of the browser window.

window.outerWidth

Gets the width of the outside of the browser window.

window.pageXOffset

An alias for window.scrollX.

window.pageYOffset

An alias for window.scrollY

window.parent

Returns a reference to the parent of the current window or subframe.

window.personalbar

Returns the personalbar object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.pkcs11

Returns the pkcs11 object, which can be used to install drivers and other software associated with the pkcs11 protocol.

window.returnValue New in Firefox 3

The return value to be returned to the function that called window.showModalDialog() to display the window as a modal dialog.

window.screen

Returns a reference to the screen object associated with the window.

window.screen.availTop

Specifies the y-coordinate of the first pixel that is not allocated to permanent or semipermanent user interface features.

window.screen.availLeft

Returns the first available pixel available from the left side of the screen.

window.screen.availHeight

Specifies the height of the screen, in pixels, minus permanent or semipermanent user interface features displayed by the operating system, such as the Taskbar on Windows.

window.screen.availWidth

Returns the amount of horizontal space in pixels available to the window.

window.screen.colorDepth

Returns the color depth of the screen.

window.screen.height

Returns the height of the screen in pixels.

window.screen.left

Returns the current distance in pixels from the left side of the screen.

window.screen.pixelDepth

Gets the bit depth of the screen.

window.screen.top

Returns the distance from the top of the screen.

window.screen.width

Returns the width of the screen.

window.screenX

Returns the horizontal distance of the left border of the user's browser from the left side of the screen.

window.screenY

Returns the vertical distance of the top border of the user's browser from the top side of the screen.

window.scrollbars

Returns the scrollbars object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.scrollMaxX

The maximum offset that the window can be scrolled to horizontally.

(i.e., the document width minus the viewport width)

window.scrollMaxY

The maximum offset that the window can be scrolled to vertically.

(i.e., the document height minus the viewport height)

window.scrollX

Returns the number of pixels that the document has already been scrolled horizontally.

window.scrollY

Returns the number of pixels that the document has already been scrolled vertically.

window.self

Returns an object reference to the window object itself.

window.sessionStorage New in Firefox 2

A storage object for storing data within a single page session.

window.sidebar

Returns a reference to the window object of the sidebar.

window.status

Gets/sets the text in the statusbar at the bottom of the browser.

window.statusbar

Returns the statusbar object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.toolbar

Returns the toolbar object, whose visibility can be toggled in the window.

window.top

Returns a reference to the topmost window in the window hierarchy.

window.window

Returns a reference to the current window.

[edit] Methods

window.alert

Displays an alert dialog.

window.addEventListener

Register an event handler to a specific event type on the window.

window.atob

Decodes a string of data which has been encoded using base-64 encoding.

window.back

Moves back one in the window history.

window.blur

Sets focus away from the window.

window.btoa

Creates a base-64 encoded ASCII string from a string of binary data.

window.captureEvents Obsolete

Registers the window to capture all events of the specified type.

window.clearInterval

Cancels the repeated execution set using setInterval.

window.clearTimeout

Clears a delay that's been set for a specific function.

window.close

Closes the current window.

window.confirm

Displays a dialog with a message that the user needs to respond to.

window.dump

Writes a message to the console.

window.escape

Encodes a string.

window.find

Searches for a given string in a window.

window.focus

Sets focus on the current window.

window.forward

Moves the window one document forward in the history.

window.getAttention

Flashes the application icon.

window.getComputedStyle

Gets computed style for the specified element. Computed style indicates the computed values of all CSS properties of the element.

window.getSelection

Returns the selection object representing the selected item(s).

window.home

Returns the browser to the home page.

window.moveBy

Moves the current window by a specified amount.

window.moveTo

Moves the window to the specified coordinates.

window.open

Opens a new window.

window.openDialog

Opens a new dialog window.

window.postMessage New in Firefox 3

Provides a secure means for one window to send a string of data to another window, which need not be within the same domain as the first, in a secure manner.

window.print

Opens the Print Dialog to print the current document.

window.prompt

Returns the text entered by the user in a prompt dialog.

window.releaseEvents Obsolete

Releases the window from trapping events of a specific type.

window.removeEventListener

Removes an event listener from the window.

window.resizeBy

Resizes the current window by a certain amount.

window.resizeTo

Dynamically resizes window.

window.scroll

Scrolls the window to a particular place in the document.

window.scrollBy

Scrolls the document in the window by the given amount.

window.scrollByLines

Scrolls the document by the given number of lines.

window.scrollByPages

Scrolls the current document by the specified number of pages.

window.scrollTo

Scrolls to a particular set of coordinates in the document.

window.setInterval

Execute a function each X milliseconds.

window.setTimeout

Sets a delay for executing a function.

window.showModalDialog New in Firefox 3

Displays a modal dialog.

window.sizeToContent

Sizes the window according to its content.

window.stop

This method stops window loading.

window.unescape

Unencodes a value that has been encoded in hexadecimal (e.g. a cookie).

window.updateCommands

Updates the state of commands of the current chrome window (UI).

[edit] Event Handlers

window.onabort

An event handler property for abort events on the window.

window.onbeforeunload

An event handler property for before-unload events on the window.

window.onblur

An event handler property for blur events on the window.

window.onchange

An event handler property for change events on the window.

window.onclick

An event handler property for click events on the window.

window.onclose

An event handler property for handling the window close event.

window.oncontextmenu

An event handler property for right-click events on the window.

window.ondragdrop

An event handler property for drag and drop events on the window.

window.onerror

An event handler property for errors raised on the window.

window.onfocus

An event handler property for focus events on the window.

window.onkeydown

An event handler property for keydown events on the window.

window.onkeypress

An event handler property for keypress events on the window.

window.onkeyup

An event handler property for keyup events on the window.

window.onload

An event handler property for window loading.

window.onmousedown

An event handler property for mousedown events on the window.

window.onmousemove

An event handler property for mousemove events on the window.

window.onmouseout

An event handler property for mouseout events on the window.

window.onmouseover

An event handler property for mouseover events on the window.

window.onmouseup

An event handler property for mouseup events on the window.

window.onpaint

An event handler property for paint events on the window.

window.onreset

An event handler property for reset events on the window.

window.onresize

An event handler property for window resizing.

window.onscroll

An event handler property for window scrolling.

window.onselect

An event handler property for window selection.

window.onsubmit

An event handler property for submits on window forms.

window.onunload

An event handler property for unload events on the window.