Question

Using history.back(), history.forward(), history.go(), and history.length

Asked by: mfreeman2

Hello,

I am developing an application that requires navigation to previous and next pages to answer questions on those pages via a form (for example, like an install wizard). I have discovered that the history functions will allow me to do navigation. I would like to do the following:

If I am on a page that has history in front of it (i.e it is not the last page in history), I want to navigate to the next page in history (history.forward()). If I am on a page that does not have history in front of it (i.e. it is the last page in history) I want to submit to the next page via the current page's form action attribute.

Therefore I need to know "How can I tell whether the page I am currently on is the last page in history or not".
By knowing that I can implement the functionality by putting a "next" button on the current page with code somewhat like the following:

< cfIf (the current page is the last page in history)>
    <cfinput name="submit" type="submit" value="Next">  <!--- the form's action attribute takes --->
<cf else>                                                                      <!--- me to the next page  --->
    <cfinput name="mybutton" type="button" value="Next" onclick="history.forward()">
</cfif>

So again my question: How can I tell whether the current page is the last page in history or not.

 

This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.

Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get

Instant Access to this Solution

  • Plus...
  • 30 Day FREE access, no risk, no obligation
  • Collaborate with the world's top tech experts
  • Unlimited access to our exclusive solution database
  • Never be left without tech help again

Subscribe Now

Asked On
2007-01-11 at 19:47:41ID22120065
Topic

Miscellaneous Web Development

Participating Experts
3
Points
500
Comments
3

Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.

  • "The time we save is the biggest benefit of Experts Exchange to Warner Bros. What could take multiple guys 2 hours or more each to find is accessed in around 15 minutes on Experts Exchange." Mike Kapnisakis, Warner Bros.
  • "Our team likes having a resource that is more secure than just using Google and most experts using this service really know their stuff. It's nice to look here first versus using Google." Dayna Sellner, Lockheed Martin
  • "Anytime that I've been stumped with a problem, 9 out of 10 times Experts Exchange has either the accepted solution or an open discussion of the potential solution to the problem." Kenny Red, eBay Inc.

See what Experts Exchange can do for you.

Got a question?

We've got the answer.

Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Need individual assistance?

Our experts are ready to help.

If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Want to learn from the best?

Read articles from industry experts.

Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.

Screenshot of an Article

Working on a long term project?

Store your work and research.

Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Access the answers to your technology questions today.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?

Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.

Trusted by the world's most respected brands.

image of each brand's logo

Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.

Experts Exchange Logo

Try it out and discover for yourself.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

Related Solutions

  1. history.back in javascript
    hello i am working with a page, where clicking back (history.back) is giving unwanted results. how to disable history.back button in a page? thank u ramesh
  2. problem with history.back
    Hi I have the following code. When i click the back button on Nestcape 4.7 it freezes. But on IE and Netscape 6 its fine. Could anybody advice me why. thanx <form action="javascript:history.back(1)" method=post> <INPUT Name="DoOrder" TYPE...
  3. history.back event
    Hello Can anyone tell me how to handle history.back event? Similar to "OnClick" event of a button click, is there any event to handle browser back button? Any inputs on the same will be helpful Thanks Anju
  4. history.back in modal dialog
    I'm displaying a modal dialog. I've a button. in its onclick event, I've given the following code onclick="history.back()" I'm not able to go the previous page. I tried with history.go(-1); but still the previous page is not shown, I would like to know whether histo...

Free Tech Articles

  1. WARNING: 5 Reasons why you should NEVER fix a computer for free.
    It is in our nature to love the puzzle. We are obsessed. The lot of us. We love puzzles. We love the challenge. We thrive on finding the answer. We hate disarray. It bothers us deep in our soul. W...
  2. SCCM OSD Basic troubleshooting
    SCCM 2007 OSD is a fantastic way to deploy operating systems, however, like most things SCCM issues can sometimes be difficult to resolve due to the sheer volume of logs to sift through and the dispe...
  3. Migrate Small Business Server 2003 to Exchange 2010 and Windows 2008 R2
    This guide is intended to provide step by step instructions on how to migrate from Small Business Server 2003 to Windows 2008 R2 with Exchange 2010. For this migration to work you will need the fo...
  4. Create a Win7 Gadget
    This article shows you how to create a simple "Gadget" -- a sort of mini-application supported by Windows 7 and Vista. Gadgets can be dropped anywhere on the desktop to provide instant information, ...
  5. Outlook continually prompting for username and password
    There have been a lot of questions recently regarding Outlook prompting for a username and password whilst using Exchange 2007. There are a few reasons why this would happen and I will try to cover t...
  6. Backup Exchange 2010 Information Store using Windows Backup
    There seems to be quite a lot of confusion around the ability to backup Exchange 2010 using the built in Windows Backup feature. This stems from the omission of this feature prior to Exchange 2007 s...

Cloud Class Webinars

  1. Avoiding Bugs in Microsoft Access
    Alison Balter takes and in-depth look at avoiding bugs in Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the immediate window to debug your applications, invoking the debugger, using breakpoints to troubleshoot, stepping through code, setting the next statement to execute, ...
  2. Top 10 Best New Features in Visio 2010
    Scott Helmers gives live demonstrations of the top 10 new features in Visio 2010. This webinar will teach you how to create compelling diagrams by adding shapes to the page with a single click, linking the shapes in a diagram to data in Excel (or SQL Server, or SharePoint), ...
  3. IT Consultant Business Secrets Revealed
    Michael Munger, Experts Exchange tech pro and IT consultant, pulls back the curtain on his very successful businesses and answers question on every IT consultant and business owner should know about. He shares secrets on what he did to solve the 5 most common problems in IT, ...
  4. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
    Quest CTO, Mike Billon, gives an overview of the steps involved in building a dunamic disaster recovery plan. Through case studies and an examination of software/hardware tooles for monitoring and testing, you'll gain a better understandin of where you are, where you want ...
  5. Organize Your Visio Diagrams with Containers and Lists
    Scott Helmers uses cross functional flowcharts, wireframe diagrams, data graphic legends and seating charts to teach you: how to ustilize all three new structured diagram components in Visio 2010, the best practices for organizeing shapes in previous version of Visio, how to organize ...
  6. How to Us Objects, Properties, Events and Methods in Microsoft Access
    Alison Dalter gives an in-depbth look at objects, properties, events and methods in Microsoft Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the object browser, referring to objects, working with properties and methods, working with object variables, understanding the ...

Join the Community

Give a Little. Get a Lot.

Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.

Join the Community

Answers

 

by: BadotzPosted on 2007-01-11 at 22:15:57ID: 18299330

um, by counting? You should know the first and last page numbers, and the number of the page you're on as well?

 

by: coviexPosted on 2007-01-11 at 23:46:39ID: 18299582

You should postpone your form submition and if history switch will happen - this postponed action will not happen.

Ex. <button onclick="window.history.forward(); window.setTimeout('alert(\'Test!\')', 10);">test</button>

 

by: NeoDiffusionPosted on 2007-01-12 at 01:52:36ID: 18300047

Hello mfreeman2,

In the sample code you give, you're mixing 2 types of programming: server side (ColdFusion) and Client (browser) side (Javascript).

From a server side perspective, I would simply suggest to create a variable containing the highest page count displayed ("MaxViewedPage" for instance). You could store this variable into a cookie (and if your user don't accept cookies, it will still be able to go through your form, just not navigate). I assume you'll will find how to do it within ColdFusion. However, if not (or not working), you can still do it through javascript (see http://techpatterns.com/downloads/javascript_cookies.php for instance)


Would read something like (beware, I don't speak "ColdFusion" language, just guessing):

< cfIf (#Variables.CurrentPage# > #Variables.MaxViewedPage#)>
   <!-- set a cookie, with name MaxViewedPage, and value of CF variable #CurrentPage#.  -->

    <cfinput name="submit" type="submit" value="Next">

<cf else>                          
    <cfinput name="mybutton" type="button" value="Next" onclick="history.forward()">
</cfif>

20120131-EE-VQP-002

3 Ways to Join

30-Day Free Trial

The Experts

98% positive feedback on 31,087 answers since March 2000. angeliii is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with MS SQL Server & Develoment.

He has also proven his knowledge of Visual Basic Programming, PHP Scripting and Oracle Databases.

The Experts

97% positive feedback on 10,752 answers since July 2000. lrmoore has more than 18 years experience in the networking industry.

The six-time Mircosoft MVPs specialties include firewalls, virtual private networking, and network management.

Testimonials

"...and excellent source for support... Kind of like having your very own IT dept." Electriciansnet

Testimonials

"I was apprehensive at signing up at first. However... it has already made my life as an IT administrator much easier." JaCrews

Testimonials

"WOW! You guys have great, active, and knowledgeable people on here." moore50

Business Clients

Business Clients

In the Press

"If you’ve got a question... Experts Exchange can supply an answer.”

In the Press

"...an invaluable aid for both IT professionals and those who require tech support."

In the Press

"where IT professionals provide quick answers on just about any topic"

Business Account Plans

Loading Advertisement...