Solve common JavaScript problems

The following links point to solutions to common problems you may encounter when writing JavaScript.

Common beginner's mistakes

Correct spelling and casing

If your code doesn't work and/or the browser complains that something is undefined, check that you've spelt all your variable names, function names, etc. correctly.

Some common built-in browser functions that cause problems are:

Correct Wrong
getElementsByTagName() getElementByTagName()
getElementsByName() getElementByName()
getElementsByClassName() getElementByClassName()
getElementById() getElementsById()

Semicolon position

You need to make sure you don't place any semicolons incorrectly. For example:

Correct Wrong
elem.style.color = 'red'; elem.style.color = 'red;'

Functions

There are a number of things that can go wrong with functions.

One of the most common errors is to declare the function, but not call it anywhere. For example:

js
function myFunction() {
  alert("This is my function.");
}

This code won't do anything unless you call it with the following statement:

js
myFunction();

Function scope

Remember that functions have their own scope — you can't access a variable value set inside a function from outside the function, unless you declared the variable globally (i.e. not inside any functions), or return the value from the function.

Running code after a return statement

Remember also that when you return from a function, the JavaScript interpreter exits the function — no code after the return statement will run.

In fact, some browsers (like Firefox) will give you an error message in the developer console if you have code after a return statement. Firefox gives you "unreachable code after return statement".

Object notation versus normal assignment

When you assign something normally in JavaScript, you use a single equals sign, e.g.:

js
const myNumber = 0;

With Objects, however, you need to take care to use the correct syntax. The object must be surrounded by curly braces, member names must be separated from their values using colons, and members must be separated by commas. For example:

js
const myObject = {
  name: "Chris",
  age: 38,
};

Basic definitions

Basic use cases

General

Variables

Math

Strings

Arrays

Debugging JavaScript

For more information on JavaScript debugging, see Handling common JavaScript problems. Also, see Other common errors for a description of common errors.

Making decisions in code

Looping/iteration

Intermediate use cases

Functions

Objects

JSON

Events

Object-oriented JavaScript

Web APIs