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JavaScript JavaScript and the DOM (Retiring) Making Changes to the DOM Modifying Elements

S Ananda
S Ananda
9,474 Points
Posted by S Ananda
S Ananda
9,474 Points

Can't figure out how to get the value of the text input element.

Here's the goal - Get the value of the text input element, and store it in a variable linkName

Here's the error - Bummer! You selected the element, but have not gotten the value.

I think I want to get the a href value. I tried the attached code, but it doesn't work. What am I missing?

I also tried a lot or other permutations, but none of them worked either, so now I'm stumped.

index.html 
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
    <head>
        <title>DOM Manipulation</title>
    </head>
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css" />
    <body>
        <div id="content">
            <label>Link Name:</label>
            <input type="text" id="linkName">
            <a id="link" href="https://teamtreehouse.com"></a>
        </div>
        <script src="app.js"></script>
    </body>
</html>
app.js 
let linkName = document.querySelector ('input');
linkName.textContent;

2 Answers

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,248 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,248 Points

Your error message has a very good hint!

The message "Bummer! You selected the element, but have not gotten the value." is spot-on. When you use querySelector you get the element itself, but what you really want is the value property of that element.

let linkName = document.querySelector('input').value;
S Ananda
S Ananda
9,474 Points
S Ananda
S Ananda
9,474 Points

I had forgotten that you could add a dot value after the querySelector. Thanks for the reminder.

Samuel Ferree
Samuel Ferree
31,722 Points
Samuel Ferree
Samuel Ferree
31,722 Points

JavaScript makes this extremely simple. when you're used to things like "innerText" and "innerHTML" you might miss it.

let linkName = document.querySelector('input').value; // <-- Voila!
// linkName now contains whatever the user typed into the input field

You'll use value a lot, so it's worth committing to memory, but if you ever forget property or method names in JavaScript, don't hesitate checking with documentation like MDN. Half of being a good developer is knowing where to find the things you don't know.