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jqueryfunctionextend

Extending an existing jQuery function


I am trying to write a plugin that will extend an existing function in jQuery, e.g.

(function($)
{
    $.fn.css = function()
    {
        // stuff I will be extending
        // that doesn't affect/change
        // the way .css() works
    };
})(jQuery);

There are only a few bits I need to extend of the .css() function. Mind me for asking, I was thinking about PHP classes since you can className extend existingClass, so I'm asking if it's possible to extend jQuery functions.


Solution

  • Sure... Just save a reference to the existing function, and call it:

    (function($)
    {
        // maintain a reference to the existing function
        var oldcss = $.fn.css;
        // ...before overwriting the jQuery extension point
        $.fn.css = function()
        {
            // original behavior - use function.apply to preserve context
            var ret = oldcss.apply(this, arguments);
    
            // stuff I will be extending
            // that doesn't affect/change
            // the way .css() works
    
            // preserve return value (probably the jQuery object...)
            return ret;
        };
    })(jQuery);