Using FormData objects
The FormData
constructor lets you compile a set of key/value pairs to send using XMLHttpRequest
. Its primarily intended for use in sending form data, but can be used independently from forms in order to transmit keyed data. The transmitted data is in the same format that the form's submit()
method would use to send the data if the form's encoding type were set to "multipart/form-data". FormData objects can be utilized in a number of ways with an XMLHttpRequest. For examples and explanations of how one can utilize FormData with XMLHttpRequests see the Using FormData Objects page. For didactic purpose only we post here a translation of the previous example transformed so as to make use of the FormData
API. Note the brevity of the code:
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" charset="UTF-8" />
<title>Sending forms with FormData – MDN</title>
<script>
"use strict";
function ajaxSuccess () {
console.log(this.responseText);
}
function AJAXSubmit (oFormElement) {
if (!oFormElement.action) { return; }
var oReq = new XMLHttpRequest();
oReq.onload = ajaxSuccess;
if (oFormElement.method.toLowerCase() === "post") {
oReq.open("post", oFormElement.action);
oReq.send(new FormData(oFormElement));
} else {
var oField, sFieldType, nFile, sSearch = "";
for (var nItem = 0; nItem < oFormElement.elements.length; nItem++) {
oField = oFormElement.elements[nItem];
if (!oField.hasAttribute("name")) { continue; }
sFieldType = oField.nodeName.toUpperCase() === "INPUT" ? oField.getAttribute("type").toUpperCase() : "TEXT";
if (sFieldType === "FILE") {
for (nFile = 0; nFile < oField.files.length; sSearch += "&" + escape(oField.name) + "=" + escape(oField.files[nFile++].name));
} else if ((sFieldType !== "RADIO" && sFieldType !== "CHECKBOX") || oField.checked) {
sSearch += "&" + escape(oField.name) + "=" + escape(oField.value);
}
}
oReq.open("get", oFormElement.action.replace(/(?:\?.*)?$/, sSearch.replace(/^&/, "?")), true);
oReq.send(null);
}
}
</script>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Sending forms with FormData</h1>
<h2>Using the GET method</h2>
<form action="register.php" method="get" onsubmit="AJAXSubmit(this); return false;">
<fieldset>
<legend>Registration example</legend>
<p>
First name: <input type="text" name="firstname" /><br />
Last name: <input type="text" name="lastname" />
</p>
<p>
<input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</p>
</fieldset>
</form>
<h2>Using the POST method</h2>
<h3>Enctype: application/x-www-form-urlencoded (default)</h3>
<form action="register.php" method="post" onsubmit="AJAXSubmit(this); return false;">
<fieldset>
<legend>Registration example</legend>
<p>
First name: <input type="text" name="firstname" /><br />
Last name: <input type="text" name="lastname" />
</p>
<p>
<input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</p>
</fieldset>
</form>
<h3>Enctype: text/plain</h3>
<p>The text/plain encoding is not supported by the FormData API.</p>
<h3>Enctype: multipart/form-data</h3>
<form action="register.php" method="post" enctype="multipart/form-data" onsubmit="AJAXSubmit(this); return false;">
<fieldset>
<legend>Upload example</legend>
<p>
First name: <input type="text" name="firstname" /><br />
Last name: <input type="text" name="lastname" /><br />
Sex:
<input id="sex_male" type="radio" name="sex" value="male" /> <label for="sex_male">Male</label>
<input id="sex_female" type="radio" name="sex" value="female" /> <label for="sex_female">Female</label><br />
Password: <input type="password" name="secret" /><br />
What do you prefer:
<select name="image_type">
<option>Books</option>
<option>Cinema</option>
<option>TV</option>
</select>
</p>
<p>
Post your photos:
<input type="file" multiple name="photos[]">
</p>
<p>
<input id="vehicle_bike" type="checkbox" name="vehicle[]" value="Bike" /> <label for="vehicle_bike">I have a bike</label><br />
<input id="vehicle_car" type="checkbox" name="vehicle[]" value="Car" /> <label for="vehicle_car">I have a car</label>
</p>
<p>
Describe yourself:<br />
<textarea name="description" cols="50" rows="8"></textarea>
</p>
<p>
<input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</p>
</fieldset>
</form>
</body>
</html>