jQuery :animated Selector

Posted in jQuery Tutorial

Updated on Oct 30, 2024

By Mari Selvan

👁️ 86 - Views

⏳ 4 mins

💬 1 Comment

Photo Credit to CodeToFun

🙋 Introduction

jQuery offers an array of selectors to manipulate and interact with elements on web pages. Among these selectors is the :animated selector, which allows you to target elements that are currently being animated. This selector comes in handy when you need to perform actions or apply styles specifically to elements undergoing animation.

In this guide, we'll explore the functionality of the jQuery :animated selector with practical examples to illustrate its usage.

🧠 Understanding :animated Selector

The :animated selector is designed to target elements that are currently in the process of being animated. This includes elements animated via jQuery's built-in animation methods such as .animate().

💡 Syntax

The syntax for the :animated selector is straightforward:

syntax.js

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$(":animated")

📝 Example

Selecting Animated Elements:

Suppose you have an element with the ID box that is being animated using jQuery's .animate() method. You can select this element while it's being animated using the :animated selector:
index.html
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```
<div id="box"></div>
```
example.js
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```
$("#box").animate({ 
    left: '250px',
    opacity: '0.5',
    height: '150px',
    width: '150px'
}, 2000);

$("#box:animated").css("background-color", "yellow");
```
This will change the background color of the animated element to yellow while the animation is in progress.
Pausing Animation for Specific Elements:

You may want to pause an animation when certain conditions are met. jQuery provides a convenient way to achieve this using the .stop() method combined with the :animated selector. For example:
example.js
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```
$("#pauseButton").click(function() {
    $(":animated").stop();
});
```
This script will pause all ongoing animations when a button with the ID pauseButton is clicked.
Handling Events for Animated Elements:

You can also bind events to elements while they are being animated. Here's an example where we log a message when an animated element is clicked:
index.html
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```
<div id="box"></div>
```
example.js
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```
$("#box").animate({ 
    left: '250px',
    opacity: '0.5',
    height: '150px',
    width: '150px'
}, 2000);

$("#box:animated").click(function() {
    console.log("Animated element clicked!");
});
```
This will log a message to the console when the animated element is clicked.

🎉 Conclusion

The jQuery :animated selector is a useful tool for targeting elements that are currently being animated on a web page. Whether you need to select animated elements, pause animations, or handle events specifically for animated elements, this selector provides a convenient solution.

By mastering its usage, you can enhance the interactivity and responsiveness of your web pages with ease.