Web pages today grow out of a coalition of technologies, including HTML, Cascading Style Sheets and JavaScript (together loosely referred to as "Dynamic HTML"). Coping with all this requires a thorough insight into the anatomy of the Document Object Model (DOM); this article explains what it is, how you use it, and where it might be leading us.
Developing successful web pages these days involves more than
simply pumping out HTML tags. Ever-evolving towards
a true development environment, complex web pages now grow
out of a coalition of technologies, including
Cascading Style Sheets,
JavaScript (both loosely referred to as
"Dynamic HTML"), and just around the corner --
XML.
Consequently, web pages are complex organisms, far
more advanced than their protozoan ancestors. Working with
such an organism requires a thorough insight into its anatomy,
and that is the basis and purpose for the
Document Object Model.
In this discussion we'll look closely at the
"DOM," as it is known -- what it is, how you
use it, and where it might be leading us. The DOM is a Web
programmer's ally, but as such, we must assume some
Web programming experience. This article is not a tutorial
on JavaScript syntax or Dynamic HTML; however, if you
have developed any of the above, you will certainly be
interested in understanding the DOM, even if you haven't
heard of it until now.
