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by Ian Lloyd

onmousedown (HTML attribute)

Browser support full matrix
IE5.5+ FF1+ Saf1.3+ Op9.2+
Full Full Full Full
Spec
Version
HTML 4
onmousedown="call_script_function();"

Example

<div onmousedown="highlightThis();">Holiday dates for 2008</div>

Description

The onmousedown attribute is similar to the onclick attribute, but differs in that the event is triggered the moment the mouse buttons is pressed on the element, not at the point the mouse button is released (onclick is effectively a combination of onmousedown followed by the onmouseup event on the element in question). This event is not often seen used ‘in the wild’ possibly because it can cause events to be triggered accidentally far too easily - if using an onclick event, the user can move the mouse pointer off the element and release the mouse button and avoid triggering the action if it was an accidental press; this is not the case with onmousedown.

Value

There is no fixed value - it is up to the author/developer what scripting goes in here, be that a call to one or more defined functions or a simple alert() statement.

Compatibility

IE5.5Full
6.0Full
7.0Full
Firefox1.0Full
1.5Full
2.0Full
Safari1.3Full
2.0Full
3.0Full
Opera9.2Full
9.5Full

Every browser listed supports this attribute, but should be avoided as it encourages mixing of content and behaviour.

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