Articles
Introduction to JavaScript
Fetch/XMLHttpRequest in JavaScript

Fetch/XMLHttpRequest in JavaScript

This article explains Fetch/XMLHttpRequest in JavaScript.

YouTube Video

javascript-html-fetch-xhr.html 
  1<!DOCTYPE html>
  2<html lang="en">
  3<head>
  4  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  5  <title>JavaScript &amp; HTML</title>
  6  <style>
  7    * {
  8        box-sizing: border-box;
  9    }
 10
 11    body {
 12        margin: 0;
 13        padding: 1em;
 14        padding-bottom: 10em;
 15        font-family: 'Segoe UI', Tahoma, Geneva, Verdana, sans-serif;
 16        background-color: #f7f9fc;
 17        color: #333;
 18        line-height: 1.6;
 19    }
 20
 21    .container {
 22        max-width: 800px;
 23        margin: 0 auto;
 24        padding: 1em;
 25        background-color: #ffffff;
 26        border: 1px solid #ccc;
 27        border-radius: 10px;
 28        box-shadow: 0 4px 12px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.05);
 29    }
 30
 31    .container-flex {
 32        display: flex;
 33        flex-wrap: wrap;
 34        gap: 2em;
 35        max-width: 1000px;
 36        margin: 0 auto;
 37        padding: 1em;
 38        background-color: #ffffff;
 39        border: 1px solid #ccc;
 40        border-radius: 10px;
 41        box-shadow: 0 4px 12px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.05);
 42    }
 43
 44    .left-column, .right-column {
 45        flex: 1 1 200px;
 46        min-width: 200px;
 47    }
 48
 49    h1, h2 {
 50        font-size: 1.2rem;
 51        color: #007bff;
 52        margin-top: 0.5em;
 53        margin-bottom: 0.5em;
 54        border-left: 5px solid #007bff;
 55        padding-left: 0.6em;
 56        background-color: #e9f2ff;
 57    }
 58
 59    button {
 60        display: block;
 61        margin: 1em auto;
 62        padding: 0.75em 1.5em;
 63        font-size: 1rem;
 64        background-color: #007bff;
 65        color: white;
 66        border: none;
 67        border-radius: 6px;
 68        cursor: pointer;
 69        transition: background-color 0.3s ease;
 70    }
 71
 72    button:hover {
 73        background-color: #0056b3;
 74    }
 75
 76    #output {
 77        margin-top: 1em;
 78        background-color: #1e1e1e;
 79        color: #0f0;
 80        padding: 1em;
 81        border-radius: 8px;
 82        min-height: 200px;
 83        font-family: Consolas, monospace;
 84        font-size: 0.95rem;
 85        overflow-y: auto;
 86        white-space: pre-wrap;
 87    }
 88
 89    .highlight {
 90        outline: 3px solid #ffc107; /* yellow border */
 91        background-color: #fff8e1;  /* soft yellow background */
 92        transition: background-color 0.3s ease, outline 0.3s ease;
 93    }
 94
 95    .active {
 96        background-color: #28a745; /* green background */
 97        color: #fff;
 98        box-shadow: 0 0 10px rgba(40, 167, 69, 0.5);
 99        transition: background-color 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease;
100    }
101  </style>
102</head>
103<body>
104    <div class="container">
105        <h1>JavaScript Console</h1>
106        <button id="executeBtn">Execute</button>
107        <div id="output"></div>
108    </div>
109
110    <script>
111        // Override console.log to display messages in the #output element
112        (function () {
113            // Override console.log
114            const originalLog = console.log;
115            console.log = function (...args) {
116                originalLog.apply(console, args);
117                const message = document.createElement('div');
118                message.textContent = args.map(String).join(' ');
119                output.appendChild(message);
120            };
121
122            // Override console.error
123            const originalError = console.error;
124            console.error = function (...args) {
125                originalError.apply(console, args);
126                const message = document.createElement('div');
127                message.textContent = args.map(String).join(' ');
128                message.style.color = 'red'; // Color error messages red
129                output.appendChild(message);
130            };
131        })();
132
133        document.getElementById('executeBtn').addEventListener('click', () => {
134            // Prevent multiple loads
135            if (document.getElementById('externalScript')) return;
136
137            const script = document.createElement('script');
138            script.src = 'javascript-html-fetch-xhr.js';
139            script.id = 'externalScript';
140            //script.onload = () => console.log('javascript-html-fetch-xhr.js loaded and executed.');
141            //script.onerror = () => console.log('Failed to load javascript-html-fetch-xhr.js.');
142            document.body.appendChild(script);
143        });
144    </script>
145</body>
146</html>

Fetch/XMLHttpRequest in JavaScript

Fetch and XMLHttpRequest (XHR) in JavaScript are both used for sending HTTP requests and retrieving data from a server.

Fetch API

The Fetch API is a modern method for handling HTTP requests, designed as a successor to XHR. It is an asynchronous API based on Promises, allowing for simpler and more flexible request handling.

Usage 

 1fetch('http://127.0.0.1:3000/example.json')
 2    .then((response) => {
 3        if (!response.ok) {
 4            throw new Error('HTTP error: ' + response.status);
 5        }
 6        return response.json();  // Parse the response as JSON
 7    })
 8    .then((data) => {
 9        console.log(data);  // Use the fetched data
10        console.log(JSON.stringify(data));
11    })
12    .catch((error) => {
13        console.error('An error occurred:', error);  // Error handling
14    });
  • This code sends a GET request to the specified URL using the Fetch API, processes the response as JSON, and displays the result or outputs an error.

Features

The Fetch API has the following features:.

  • Promise-based Asynchronous operations can be managed with Promises, making the code cleaner and easier to read.
  • Easy error handling Errors can be easily handled using the catch block.
  • Parsing with methods like response.json() Response data can be easily processed in JSON or text format.
  • CORS support Fetch operates based on Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) rules.
  • Flexible request configuration Not only GET/POST, but also HTTP methods like PUT and DELETE can be easily configured.

Example: POST Request 

 1fetch('http://127.0.0.1:3000/example.json', {
 2        method: 'POST',
 3        headers: {
 4            'Content-Type': 'application/json'
 5        },
 6        body: JSON.stringify({ name: 'Alice', age: 25 })  // Send the request body as JSON
 7    })
 8    .then(response => response.json())
 9    .then(data => console.log(JSON.stringify(data)))
10    .catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));
  • This code sends a POST request containing JSON data and receives and displays the response from the server as JSON.

Disadvantages

The Fetch API has the following disadvantages:.

  • Browser compatibility Older browsers (especially IE11) do not support the Fetch API.
  • Difficult to perform fine-grained control Compared to XHR, it is not suitable for low-level controls like handling progress events.

XMLHttpRequest（XHR）

XMLHttpRequest is an API that has long been used to handle HTTP requests and has been widely used as the basis for AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML). Enables asynchronous communication, allowing data to be retrieved from the server without reloading the entire page.

Usage 

 1const xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
 2xhr.open('GET', 'http://127.0.0.1:3000/example.json', true);
 3xhr.onreadystatechange = function() {
 4    if (xhr.readyState === 4 && xhr.status === 200) {
 5        const data = JSON.parse(xhr.responseText);  // Parse the response as JSON
 6        console.log(data);  // Use the data
 7        console.log(JSON.stringify(data));
 8    }
 9};
10xhr.send();  // Send the request
  • This code sends a GET request using XMLHttpRequest, parses the received JSON response, and displays it.

Features

XMLHttpRequest has the following features:.

  • Callback-based Callback functions such as onreadystatechange are used to monitor the completion or progress of the request.
  • Monitoring status codes and ready states The request status can be checked using xhr.readyState and xhr.status.
  • Broad compatibility Works even on older browsers.
  • Monitor request progress Progress can be monitored using events such as xhr.upload.onprogress.

Example: POST Request 

 1const xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
 2xhr.open('POST', 'http://127.0.0.1:3000/example.json', true);
 3xhr.setRequestHeader('Content-Type', 'application/json');
 4xhr.onreadystatechange = function() {
 5    if (xhr.readyState === 4 && xhr.status === 200) {
 6        const data = JSON.parse(xhr.responseText);
 7        console.log(data);
 8        console.log(JSON.stringify(data));
 9    }
10};
11xhr.send(JSON.stringify({ name: 'Alice', age: 25 }));  // Send the data
  • This code sends a POST request with JSON data using XMLHttpRequest, receives the response, and displays it.

Disadvantages

XMLHttpRequest has the following disadvantages:.

  • Code complexity Managing asynchronous processing with callback functions tends to be complex.
  • No native Promise support Since Promises are not supported by default, asynchronous processing becomes somewhat verbose.

Comparison between Fetch API and XMLHttpRequest

Features Fetch API XMLHttpRequest (XHR)
Asynchronous processing Simple with Promises Requires callback functions
Error handling Manageable with .catch() Check readyState status
Progress events Not supported Handled with onprogress
Cross-origin support Automatically supports CORS Supports CORS
Browser support Not supported in IE11 and older Compatible with older browsers
Granularity of control Simple and intuitive Allows fine-grained control

Summary

  • The Fetch API provides simple and flexible HTTP requests based on Promises and is recommended in modern browsers.

You can follow along with the above article using Visual Studio Code on our YouTube channel. Please also check out the YouTube channel.

YouTube Video

Event Handling in JavaScript