elementNode.getAttributeNode(attributeObject);

• elementNode is a tag node. It mush have been created with the createElement() method.
• attributeObject is an object that must have been created with the createAttribute() method.

Here is a sample code which first creates an object, nodePublishDate, that is equal to today's date. It then creates a tag element node ("P"), and finally converts this latter node to an attribute node:

var nodeBook, nodePublishDate;
nodePublishDate = document.createAttribute("PublishDate");
nodePublishDate.value = String(Date());
nodeBook = document.createElement("P");
nodeBook.setAttributeNode(nodePublishDate);

We put it in a conditional statement in the header of this tip:

if (bVer() >= 6) {
  var nodeBook, nodePublishDate;
  nodePublishDate = document.createAttribute("PublishDate");
  nodePublishDate.value = String(Date());
  nodeBook = document.createElement("P");
  nodeBook.setAttributeNode(nodePublishDate);
}

Click the following buttons to see that indeed nodeBook is an attribute node. The name of the attribute is PublishDate and its value is today's date:

<FORM>
<INPUT TYPE="button" VALUE="getAttribute('PublishDate')" 
  onClick="javascript:if (bVer()>=6) {alert(nodeBook.getAttribute('PublishDate'))} 
  else {alert('You must use Netscape 6 (or higher) or Internet Explorer 6 (or higher)')}">
<INPUT TYPE="button" VALUE="getAttributeNode('PublishDate').value" 
  onClick="javascript:if (bVer()>=6) {alert(nodeBook.getAttributeNode('PublishDate').value)} 
  else {alert('You must use Netscape 6 (or higher) or Internet Explorer 6 (or higher)')}">
</FORM>

The browser version is computed by the bVer() function:

function bVer() {
  // return version number (e.g., 4.03)
  msieIndex = navigator.appVersion.indexOf("MSIE") + 5;
  return(parseFloat(navigator.appVersion.substr(msieIndex,3)));
}

Notice the usage of the getAttributeNode() method above. Also, notice the similarity between getAttribute() and getAttributeNode().

People who read this tip also read these tips:

• The Event Object Properties
• The Virtual Root Node Type
• Detecting A Page Completion
• The Netscape 6 Event Object
• Moving Objects Horizontally