componentFromPoint method (Internet Explorer)

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Returns the component located at the specified coordinates via certain events.

Syntax

object.componentFromPoint(x, y)

Parameters

x [in]

Type: Integer

Specifies the client window coordinate of x.

y [in]

Type: Integer

Specifies the client window coordinate of y.

Return value

Type: String

String. Returns one of the following possible values.

Return value	Description
empty string	Component is inside the client area of the object.
outside	Component is outside the bounds of the object.
scrollbarDown	Down scroll arrow is at the specified location.
scrollbarHThumb	Horizontal scroll thumb or box is at the specified location.
scrollbarLeft	Left scroll arrow is at the specified location.
scrollbarPageDown	Page-down scroll bar shaft is at the specified location.
scrollbarPageLeft	Page-left scroll bar shaft is at the specified location.
scrollbarPageRight	Page-right scroll bar shaft is at the specified location.
scrollbarPageUp	Page-up scroll bar shaft is at the specified location.
scrollbarRight	Right scroll arrow is at the specified location.
scrollbarUp	Up scroll arrow is at the specified location.
scrollbarVThumb	Vertical scroll thumb or box is at the specified location.
handleBottom	Bottom sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleBottomLeft	Lower-left sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleBottomRight	Lower-right sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleLeft	Left sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleRight	Right sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleTop	Top sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleTopLeft	Upper-left sizing handle is at the specified location.
handleTopRight	Upper-right sizing handle is at the specified location.

Standards information

There are no standards that apply here.

Remarks

The componentFromPoint method, available as of Microsoft Internet Explorer 5, is applicable to any object that can be given scroll bars through Cascading Style Sheets (CSS).

The componentFromPoint method might not return the same object consistently when it is used with the onmouseover event. Because a user's mouse speed and entry point can vary, different components of an element can fire the onmouseover event. For example, when a user moves the cursor over a textArea object with scroll bars, the event might fire when the mouse enters the component border, the scroll bars, or the client region. After the event fires, the expected element might not be returned, unless the scroll bars were the point of entry for the mouse. In this case, the onmousemove event can be used to provide more consistent results.

For the object's sizing handles to appear, designMode must be On, and the object must be selected.

Examples

This example uses the componentFromPoint method to determine which object the mouse pointer is hovering over.

Code example: http://samples.msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/samples/author/dhtml/refs/componentFromPointEX1.htm



<html>
<head>
<script type="text/javascript">
  /*When this function is activated, an alert pops up displays the component at the position of the pointer. */
  function ComponentSnapShot() {
    var sElem = "";
    sElem = document.body.componentFromPoint(
       event.clientX,
       event.clientY
    );
    if (sElem == "")
      alert("No component there!");
    else
      alert("Component: " + sElem);
  }
  function trackElement() {
    var sElem = "";
    sElem = document.body.componentFromPoint(
       event.clientX,
       event.clientY
    );
    window.status = "mousemove " + event.clientX + ", "
       + event.clientY +
       " The mouse pointer is hovering over: " + sElem;

  }
</script>
</head>
<!-- There are several different events that can be used with componentFromPoint. Below are a few of them. 
Be carefull! Not all mouse events can be used with componentFromPoint.  -->
<body onmousemove="trackElement()" onmousedown="ComponentSnapShot()" onkeydown="ComponentSnapShot()" oncontextmenu="ComponentSnapShot()">
<textarea cols="500" rows="500">
This text forces scroll bars to appear in the window.
</textarea>
</body>
</html>

componentFromPoint method