Welcome to History.js (v1.7.0 - April 01 2011)

This project is the successor of jQuery History, it aims to:

• Follow the HTML5 History API as much as possible
• Provide a cross-compatible experience for all HTML5 Browsers (they all implement the HTML5 History API a little bit differently causing different behaviours and sometimes bugs - History.js fixes this ensuring the experience is as expected / the same / great throughout the HTML5 browsers)
• Provide a backwards-compatible experience for all HTML4 Browsers using a hash-fallback (including continued support for the HTML5 History API's data, title, pushState and replaceState) with the option to remove HTML4 support if it is not right for your application
• Provide a forwards-compatible experience for HTML4 States to HTML5 States (so if a hash-fallbacked url is accessed by a HTML5 browser it is naturally transformed into its non-hashed url equivalent)
• Provide support for as many javascript frameworks as possible via adapters; especially jQuery, MooTools, Prototype and Zepto

Licensed under the New BSD License Copyright 2011 Benjamin Arthur Lupton

Usage

Working with History.js:

(function(window,undefined){

	// Prepare
	var History = window.History; // Note: We are using a capital H instead of a lower h
	if ( !History.enabled ) {
		 // History.js is disabled for this browser.
		 // This is because we can optionally choose to support HTML4 browsers or not.
		return false;
	}

	// Bind to StateChange Event
	History.Adapter.bind(window,'statechange',function(){ // Note: We are using statechange instead of popstate
		var State = History.getState(); // Note: We are using History.getState() instead of event.state
		History.log(State.data, State.title, State.url);
	});

	// Change our States
	History.pushState({state:1}, "State 1", "?state=1"); // logs {state:1}, "State 1", "?state=1"
	History.pushState({state:2}, "State 2", "?state=2"); // logs {state:2}, "State 2", "?state=2"
	History.replaceState({state:3}, "State 3", "?state=3"); // logs {state:3}, "State 3", "?state=3"
	History.pushState(null, null, "?state=4"); // logs {}, '', "?state=4"
	History.back(); // logs {state:3}, "State 3", "?state=3"
	History.back(); // logs {state:1}, "State 1", "?state=1"
	History.back(); // logs {}, "Home Page", "?"
	History.go(2); // logs {state:3}, "State 3", "?state=3"

})(window);

To ajaxify your entire website with the HTML5 History API, History.js and jQuery this snippet of code is all you need. It's that easy.

How would the above operations look in a HTML5 Browser?

1. www.mysite.com
2. www.mysite.com/?state=1
3. www.mysite.com/?state=2
4. www.mysite.com/?state=3
5. www.mysite.com/?state=4
6. www.mysite.com/?state=3
7. www.mysite.com/?state=1
8. www.mysite.com
9. www.mysite.com/?state=3

Note: These urls also work in HTML4 browsers and Search Engines. So no need for the hashbang (#!) fragment-identifier that google "recommends".

How would they look in a HTML4 Browser?

1. www.mysite.com
2. www.mysite.com/#?state=1&_suid=1
3. www.mysite.com/#?state=2&_suid=2
4. www.mysite.com/#?state=3&_suid=3
5. www.mysite.com/#?state=4
6. www.mysite.com/#?state=3&_suid=3
7. www.mysite.com/#?state=1&_suid=1
8. www.mysite.com
9. www.mysite.com/#?state=3&_suid=3

Note 1: These urls also work in HTML5 browsers - we use replaceState to transform these HTML4 states into their HTML5 equivalents so the user won't even notice :-)

Note 2: These urls will be automatically url-encoded in IE6 to prevent certain browser-specific bugs.

Note 3: Support for HTML4 browsers (this hash fallback) is optional - why supporting HTML4 browsers could be either good or bad based on my app's use cases

What's the deal with the SUIDs used in the HTML4 States?

• SUIDs (State Unique Identifiers) are used when we utilise a title and/or data in our state. Adding a SUID allows us to associate particular states with data and titles while keeping the urls as simple as possible (don't worry it's all tested, working and a lot smarter than I'm making it out to be).
• If you aren't utilising title or data then we don't even include a SUID (as there is no need for it) - as seen by State 4 above :-)
• We also shrink the urls to make sure that the smallest url will be used. For instance we will adjust http://www.mysite.com/#http://www.mysite.com/projects/History.js to become http://www.mysite.com/#/projects/History.js automatically. (again tested, working, and smarter).
• It works with domains, subdomains, subdirectories, whatever - doesn't matter where you put it. It's smart.
• Safari 5 will also have a SUID appended to the URL, it is entirely transparent but just a visible side-effect. It is required to fix a bug with Safari 5.

Is there a working demo?

• Sure is, give it a download and navigate to the demo directory in your browser :-)
• If you are after something a bit more adventurous than a end-user demo, open up the tests directory in your browser and editor - it'll rock your world and show all the vast use cases that History.js supports.

Download & Installation

1. Download History.js and upload it to your webserver. Download links: tar.gz or zip

2. Include JSON2 for HTML4 Browsers Only (replace www.yourwebsite.com)

    <script>if ( typeof window.JSON === 'undefined' ) { document.write('<script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/json2.js"><\/script>'); }</script>
   

3. Include Amplify.js Store for Data Persistance and Synchronisation Support (optional but recommended)

    <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/amplify.store.js"></script>
   

4. Include the Adapter for your Framework:

   • jQuery v1.3+

       <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.adapter.jquery.js"></script>
     

   • Mootools v1.3+

       <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.adapter.mootools.js"></script>
     

   • Prototype v1.7+ (does not support versions of IE prior to 9 due to a bug in the prototype library)

       <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.adapter.prototype.js"></script>
     

   • Zepto v0.5+

       <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.adapter.zepto.js"></script>
     

   • Would you like to support another framework? No problem! It's very easy to create adapters, and I'll be happy to include them or help out if you let me know :-)

5. Include History.js

    <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.js"></script>
    <script src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/history.js/scripts/compressed/history.html4.js"></script>
   

Note: If you want to only support HTML5 Browsers and not HTML4 Browsers (so no hash fallback support) then just remove the history.html4.js file include in step #5 and the JSON2 (json2.js) file include in step #2 - why supporting HTML4 browsers could be either good or bad based on my app's use cases

Subscribe to Updates

• For Email Updates:
  • You can subscribe via the subscription form included in the demo page
• For Commit RSS/Atom Updates:
  • You can subscribe via the GitHub Commit Atom Feed
• For GitHub News Feed Updates:
  • You can click the "watch" button up the top right of History.js's GitHub Project Page

Getting Support

History.js is an actively supported, maintained and developed project. You can grab support via its GitHub Issue Tracker and contact its core developer Benjamin Lupton via twitter, skype (balupton) and email ([email protected]). Benjamin is also available for bookings (trainings, seminars, talks), consulting (development, advisory), sponsorship (angels, investors, donations, advertisement), interviews, chats, hackathons, socials and mentoring.

Giving Support

If you'd love to give some support back and make a difference; here are a few great ways you can give back!

• Give it your honest rating on its jQuery Plugin's Page and its Ohloh Page
• If you have any feedback or suggestions let me know via its Issue Tracker - so that I can ensure you get the best experience!
• Spread the word via tweets, blogs, tumblr, whatever - the more people talking about it the better!
• Make a donation - every cent truly does help!
• Add your website or app which is using History.js to the Showcase
• Watch it via clicking the "watch" button up the top of its Project Page

Thanks! every bit of help really does make a difference. Again thank you.

Browsers: Tested and Working In

HTML5 Browsers

• Chrome 8,9,10
• Firefox 4
• Safari 5
• Safari iOS 4.3

HTML4 Browsers

• IE 6,7,8,9
• Firefox 3
• Opera 10,11
• Safari 4
• Safari iOS prior to version 4.3

Exposed API

Functions

• History.pushState(data,title,url)
  Pushes a new state to the browser; data can be null or an object, title can be null or a string, url must be a string
• History.replaceState(data,title,url)
  Replaces the existing state with a new state to the browser; data can be null or an object, title can be null or a string, url must be a string
• History.getState()
  Gets the current state of the browser, returns an object with data, title and url
• History.getHash()
  Gets the current hash of the browser
• History.Adapter.bind(element,event,callback)
  A framework independent event binder, you may either use this or your framework's native event binder.
• History.Adapter.trigger(element,event)
  A framework independent event trigger, you may either use this or your framework's native event trigger.
• History.Adapter.onDomLoad(callback)
  A framework independent onDomLoad binder, you may either use this or your framework's native onDomLoad binder.
• History.back()
  Go back once through the history (same as hitting the browser's back button)
• History.forward()
  Go forward once through the history (same as hitting the browser's forward button)
• History.go(X)
  If X is negative go back through history X times, if X is positive go forwards through history X times
• History.log(...)
  Logs messages to the console, the log element, and fallbacks to alert if neither of those two exist
• History.debug(...)
  Same as History.log but only runs if History.debug.enable === true

Events

• window.onstatechange
  Fired when the state of the page changes (does not include hash changes)
• window.onanchorchange
  Fired when the anchor of the page changes (does not include state hashes)

Notes on Compatibility

• History.js solves the following browser bugs:
  • HTML5 Browsers
    • Chrome 8 sometimes does not contain the correct state data when traversing back to the initial state
    • Safari 5, Safari iOS 4 and Firefox 3 and 4 do not fire the onhashchange event when the page is loaded with a hash
    • Safari 5 and Safari iOS 4 do not fire the onpopstate event when the hash has changed unlike the other browsers
    • Safari 5 and Safari iOS 4 fail to return to the correct state once a hash is replaced by a replaceState call / bug report
    • Safari 5 and Safari iOS 4 sometimes fail to apply the state change under busy conditions / bug report
    • Google Chrome 8,9,10 and Firefox 4 prior to the RC will always fire onpopstate once the page has loaded / change recommendation
    • Safari iOS 4.0, 4.1, 4.2 have a working HTML5 History API - although the actual back buttons of the browsers do not work, therefore we treat them as HTML4 browsers
    • None of the HTML5 browsers actually utilise the title argument to the pushState and replaceState calls
  • HTML4 Browsers
    • Old browsers like MSIE 6,7 and Firefox 2 do not have a onhashchange event
    • MSIE 6 and 7 sometimes do not apply a hash even it was told to (requiring a second call to the apply function)
    • Non-Opera HTML4 browsers sometimes do not apply the hash when the hash is not urlencoded
  • All Browsers
    • State data and titles do not persist once the site is left and then returned (includes page refreshes)
    • State titles are never applied to the document.title
• ReplaceState functionality is emulated in HTML4 browsers by discarding the replaced state, so when the discarded state is accessed it is skipped using the appropriate History.back() / History.forward() call
• Data persistance and synchronisation works like so: Every second or so, the SUIDs and URLs of the states will synchronise between the store and the local session. When a new session opens a familiar state (via the SUID or the URL) and it is not found locally then it will attempt to load the last known stored state with that information.
• URLs will be unescaped to the maximum, so for instance the URL ?key=a%20b%252c will become ?key=a b c. This is to ensure consistency between browser url encodings.
• Changing the hash of the page causes onpopstate to fire (this is expected/standard functionality). To ensure correct compatibility between HTML5 and HTML4 browsers the following events have been created:
  • window.onstatechange: this is the same as the onpopstate event except it does not fire for traditional anchors
  • window.onanchorchange: this is the same as the onhashchange event except it does not fire for states
• Known Issues
  • Opera 11 fails to create history entries when under stressful loads (events fire perfectly, just the history events fail) - there is nothing we can do about this
  • Mercury iOS fails to apply url changes (hashes and HTML5 History API states) - there is nothing we can do about this

Changelog

• v1.7.0 - April 01 2011

  • Added History.enabled property (refer to usage section). This reflects whether or not History.js is enabled for our particular browser. For instance, if we have not included support for a HTML4 browser and we are accessing through a HTML4 browser then History.enabled will be false.
  • Added (optional but recommended) Data Persistance and Synchronisation Support thanks to AppendTo's Amplify.js (refer to installation and compatibility sections for details)
  • Made HTML5 SUIDs more transparent - Reported by azago and Mark Jaquith
  • Fixed Session Storage Issue - Reported by a whole bunch of different people; one, two, three
  • Fixed URL Encoding Issue - Reported by Rob Madole
  • Disabled support for IE6,7,8 when using the Prototype Adapter (there is nothing we can do about this, it is due to a bug in the prototype library) - Reported by Sindre Wimberger
  • URLs in the State Hashes for HTML4 Browsers are now even shorter - Discussion
  • Fixed a issue with the MooTools Adapter and JSON with IE7 and IE8

• v1.6.0 - March 22 2011

  • Added Zepto adapter thanks to Matt Garrett
  • The readme now references the supported versions of the libraries we use
  • Updated vendors to the most recent versions. jQuery 1.5.1 and Mootools 1.3.1
  • Reverted versions of Safari iOS prior to version 4.3 to be HTML4 browsers, Safari iOS 4.3 is a HTML5 browser
  • Refined code in History.js and its adapters
  • Fixed issue with extra state being inserted on Safari 5 requiring an extra click on the back button to go home - Reported by Rob Madole
  • Fixed issue with Safari 5 and Safari iOS 4 sometimes failing to apply the state change under busy conditions - Solution conceived with Matt Garrett
  • Fixed issue with HTML4 browsers requiring a query-string in the urls of states - Reported by azago
  • Fixed issue with HTML4 browsers requiring title in the states in order to use state data - Reported by Jonathan McLaughlin
  • Fixed issue with HTML4 browsers failing is a state is pushed/replaced twice in a row - Reported by Joey Baker
  • B/C BREAK: The statechange event now only fires if the state has changed; it no longer fires on page initialisation. This is following the Firefox 4 History API Changes which we agree with - this breaks standard, but makes more sense.

• v1.5.0 - February 12 2011

  • Moved to UglifyJS instead of Google Closure
  • Split HTML4 functionality from HTML5 functionality
  • Installation details have changed (the filenames are different)

• v1.4.1 - February 10 2011

  • Added HTML History API Support for Safari 5 and Safari iOS 4.2.1
  • Cleaned code a bit (mostly with unit tests)

• v1.4.0 - February 10 2011

  • Unit Testing now uses QUnit
  • Corrected Safari 5 Support
  • Now uses queues instead of timeouts
    • This means the API works exactly as expected, no more need to wrap calls in timeouts
  • Included a Subscribe Form in the Demo for Version Updates via Email
  • Small updates to Documentation

• v1.3.1 - February 04 2011

  • Improved Documentation

• v1.3.0 - January 31 2011

  • Support for cleaner HTML4 States

• v1.2.1 - January 30 2011

  • Fixed History.log always being called - reported by dlee
  • Re-Added History.go(index) support

• v1.2.0 - January 25 2011

  • Support for HTML4 States in HTML5 Browsers (added test)
  • Updates of Documentation

• v1.1.0 - January 24 2011

  • Developed a series of automated test cases
  • Fixed issue with traditional anchors
  • Fixed issue with differing replaceState functionality in HTML4 Browsers
  • Fixed issue with Google Chrome artefacts being carried over to the initial state
  • Provided onstatechange and onanchorchange events

• v1.0.0 - January 22 2011

  • Supported History.pushState and History.replaceState degradation
  • Supported jQuery, MooTools and Prototype Frameworks

Todo for Upcoming Releases

• Allow for url to be optional in pushState and replaceState calls
• Add an Ajax extension to succeed the jQuery Ajaxy project
• Add a compilation test to ensure .debug = false and no History.log or console.xxx calls exist.

It's likely these features and/or others have been included in the latest dev branch. If you are wanting to fork and help out, then be sure to work on the dev branch and not master.