Description:

In this talk the audience will learn how to use jQuery, in conjunction with feature detection, in order to use the new semantic elements provided by HTML5 (i.e., <header>, <footer>, <nav>), as well as emulate the new input types (i.e., type=date, type=range) and input attributes (i.e., autofocus, list, pattern), in a cross-browser, future-proof fashion. In order to do this, we'll walk through the creation of a few example plugins:

$.fn.autofocus $.fn.placeholder $.fn.datalist $.fn.pattern

However, the primary focus will not be the specific mechanics of these example plugins--but rather how to use jQuery as a stopgap solution while browser vendors work on implementing native support for these new features.

In addition to spending time on building our own plugins, this talk will discuss how to leverage jQuery UI widgets as a means of using the new input types with minimal effort.

Alas, using HTML5 today is not all ponies and unicorns—there are certain risks. As such, this talk will conclude by discussing the gotchas of using these new elements and features in today’s most popular browsers with partial or no HTML5 support (what’s up, Internet Explorer), including Ajax, CSS (for screen and print media), and interacting with the DOM via jQuery.