Output random item from javascript array

Question

So I have this code:

$('.submit_button').click(function() {
        var optionsArray = $(".inputID").map(function() {
            return this.value;
        }).get().join(",");

        var randomOutput = optionsArray[Math.floor(Math.random()*optionsArray.length)];

        console.log(randomOutput);

    });

What I'm trying to do upon clicking the button (.submit_button) is for it to take the user entered data (they are inputs with the class .inputID), store them in an array (which i have done and it works) and then console.log (at least for now while I'm testing) one of the inputs at random. What it currently does is just console.logs a single character instead of a whole item from the array. What am I doing wrong?

You don't want to use .join(), which gives a string instead of an array. — Bergi
– Bergi, Commented Jan 11, 2015 at 16:19

Oleksandr T. · Accepted Answer · 2015-01-11 16:19:01Z

3

Remove join

    var optionsArray = $(".inputID").map(function() {
        return this.value;
    }).get();

join() method joins the elements of an array into a string, and returns the string.

answered Jan 11, 2015 at 16:19

Oleksandr T.

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1 Comment

David Thomas Over a year ago

It's worth mentioning that the single character is because a String is effectively an array of characters.

surajck · Accepted Answer · 2015-01-11 16:20:51Z

1

You are doing a join. So optionsArray is one single string, not an array anyomore. So optionsArray[<anything>] is basically a character.

Remove the join(",") part and it'll work.

answered Jan 11, 2015 at 16:20

surajck

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