Custom jQuery Functions for Managing Element Visibility with `visibility: hidden`

Introduction

In web development, controlling element visibility is a fundamental task. jQuery provides convenient methods like .hide() and .show(), which manipulate the display property of elements to make them appear or disappear from the layout. However, these methods don’t offer control over the CSS visibility property, which can be crucial for preserving an element’s space in the layout while making it invisible.

This tutorial will guide you through creating custom jQuery functions that mimic .hide() and .show(), but specifically adjust the visibility property of elements. We’ll also explore a toggle function to switch between visible and hidden states using visibility.

Understanding CSS Visibility

Before diving into jQuery, let’s briefly understand what visibility: hidden; does:

• Visibility Hidden: The element is invisible, but it still occupies space in the layout.
• Display None: The element is completely removed from the document flow and does not occupy any space.

The distinction between these two properties allows developers to hide elements without disrupting the surrounding layout. This can be useful when you want an interactive component to be hidden while maintaining its space for a seamless user experience once it’s made visible again.

Creating Custom jQuery Functions

We’ll create three functions: .visible(), .invisible(), and .visibilityToggle() using jQuery’s extensibility features. These functions will allow us to manage the visibility CSS property easily.

1. Making an Element Visible

First, let’s define a function that sets an element’s visibility to visible:

jQuery.fn.visible = function () {
    return this.css('visibility', 'visible');
};

This method uses jQuery’s .css() function to set the visibility property directly.

2. Making an Element Invisible

Next, we create a function that hides elements while preserving their space in the layout:

jQuery.fn.invisible = function () {
    return this.css('visibility', 'hidden');
};

Like the previous function, this method sets the visibility to hidden.

3. Toggling Visibility

To allow toggling between visible and hidden states without hardcoding values, we can implement a toggle function:

jQuery.fn.visibilityToggle = function () {
    return this.css('visibility', function (_, visibility) {
        return (visibility === 'visible') ? 'hidden' : 'visible';
    });
};

Here, the .css() method takes a callback that checks the current state and toggles it accordingly.

4. Using Toggle Class with CSS

For cases where you prefer using class-based styling, here’s how you can achieve similar functionality:

CSS:

.newClass {
    visibility: hidden;
}

JavaScript:

$(document).ready(function() {
    $(".trigger").click(function() {
        $(".hidden_element").toggleClass("newClass");
    });
});

This method leverages jQuery’s .toggleClass() to switch a CSS class that controls visibility.

Integrating with Animation

If you require the animation features of jQuery while also managing visibility, consider chaining methods:

$('#subs_selection_box').fadeOut('slow', function() {
    $(this).css({
        "visibility": "hidden",
        "display": "block"
    });
});

Here, fadeOut() animates the disappearance, and a callback function sets the CSS properties to maintain layout integrity.

Example Usage

To use these custom functions in your project:

1. Include jQuery library.
2. Implement the above functions in your script file or inside a <script> tag on your webpage.

Example:

$(document).ready(function() {
    $("#myElement").invisible();

    // To make it visible again:
    $("#myElement").visible();
    
    // Toggle visibility on button click
    $(".toggle-button").click(function() {
        $("#myElement").visibilityToggle();
    });
});

In this example, #myElement is initially hidden. Clicking a button with the class .toggle-button toggles its visibility.

Conclusion

By extending jQuery with custom functions for managing element visibility using visibility: hidden, developers can achieve more nuanced control over their layouts while preserving space and maintaining smooth animations. This approach provides flexibility in how elements are displayed or hidden, enhancing user interactions without compromising on layout design.