Run javascript function when user finishes typing instead of on key up?

Question

I want to trigger an ajax request when the user has finished typing in a text box. I don\'t want it to run the function on every time the user types a letter because that wo

Answer 1

Yes, you can set a timeout of say 2 seconds on each and every key up event which will fire an ajax request. You can also store the XHR method and abort it on subsequent key press events so that you save bandwith even more. Here's something I've written for an autocomplete script of mine.

var timer;
var x;

$(".some-input").keyup(function () {
    if (x) { x.abort() } // If there is an existing XHR, abort it.
    clearTimeout(timer); // Clear the timer so we don't end up with dupes.
    timer = setTimeout(function() { // assign timer a new timeout 
        x = $.getJSON(...); // run ajax request and store in x variable (so we can cancel)
    }, 2000); // 2000ms delay, tweak for faster/slower
});

Hope this helps,

Marko