First Time Only

2. Obtain the Script

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Introduction

To add first time only processing to your web page you first need to copy the Javascript code into the head section of your page.

// First Time Visit Processing
// copyright 10th January 2006, Stephen Chapman
// permission to use this Javascript on your web page is granted
// provided that all of the below code in this script (including this
// comment) is used without any alteration
function rC(nam) {var tC = document.cookie.split('; '); for (var i = tC.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {var x = tC[i].split('='); if (nam = x[0]) return unescape(x[1]);} return '~';} function wC(nam,val) {document.cookie = nam + '=' + escape(val);} function lC(nam,pg) {var val = rC(nam); if (val.indexOf('~'+pg+'~') != -1) return false; val += pg + '~'; wC(nam,val); return true;} function firstTime(cN) {return lC('pWrD4jBo',cN);} function thisPage() {var page = location.href.substring(location.href.lastIndexOf('\/')+1); pos = page.indexOf('.');if (pos > -1) {page = page.substr(0,pos);} return page;}

// example code to call it - you may modify this as required
function start() {
   if (firstTime(thisPage())) {
      // this code only runs for first visit
      alert('welcome');
   }
   // other code to run every time once page is loaded goes here
}
onload = start;

Copy the above Javascript and save it to an external file. I called mine firsttime.js.

We can now link the Javascript into the head of our web page using the following code:

The final step is to replace the alert('welcome'); statement with whatever processing it is that you want to have performed only on the first visit to the page.

Introduction and Sample | Obtain the Script

Guide since 2004

Stephen Chapman
JavaScript Guide

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