What is the mousedown() method in jQuery?

Overview

The mousedown() method triggers the mousedown event when the mouse pointer is over a selected element and the mouse button is pressed. It is a short-hand of the on('mousedown', eventHandler) event.

Syntax

$(selector).mousedown(function());

Parameters

This method accepts only one parameter, which is a function invoked when triggered by the mousedown() method.

Code example

Let’s look at the code below:

Implementation of mousedown() method

Code explanation

In the HTML tab:

  • Line 6: We create a div with id="content".
  • Line 7: We import the jQuery script.

In the JavaScript tab:

  • Line 4: We attach the mousedown() method on the element with the id of content ( "#content").
  • Line 6: We use the css() method to change the background color of that element ( "#content") when mousedown() is invoked.
  • Lines 10 to 15: We create a function, randomColor that generates a random color and returns it.

Output

The mousedown() method is invoked once we move the mouse pointer over the square and press the mouse button. As a result, the background color of the square changes.

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