The Browser Object Model (BOM) is a feature first used by Internet Explorer 3 and Netscape Navigator 3. It allowed the manipulation of a browser window and its context.

While the BOM extensions may be very useful, they also may be a very problematic. That's is due two facts; first, there is no standard implemented that strictly guides the usage of BOM, and second, those techniques are often used for annoying pop-menus and spam-like behavior of the browser.

Because the BOM extensions are so often used there are some methods or objects that have become "unwritten" standards; to mention a couple, BOM objects window and navigator.

Some popular BOM extensions are listed here:

  • The capability to pop up a new browser window;
  • The capability to move, resize, and close browser windows;
  • The navigator object which provides detailed information about the browser;
  • The location object which gives detailed information about the page loaded in the browser;
  • The screen object which gives detailed information about the user's screen resolution;
  • Support for cookies;
  • Custom objects such as XMLHttpRequest used for AJAX application.

The details about BOM are given in the "Browser Object Model" chapter further in tutorial.

 

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