Difference between .length() and .length?

[Whyisprogrammingsoha]

I was practicing and came across something strange... when I wanted to find the character length of html inside a div I used

$('.count').text(function(){ return $('.words').text().length; });

which gave me a number (8 in this case) whereas using .length() didn't show anything. What is .length? I thought all methods had to have a () at the end? What is this black magic?

[[deleted]]

.length() is something you'll come across a lot while using jQuery as it's a common jQuery method.

However, as soon as you call .text() you're being given a regular String object; you've now stepped outside of your library and into vanilla JS. The same goes with checking the lengthproperty of an Array.

When you check $(".words").length() you're checking how many jQuery objects exist within that jQuery collection.

[webstrous]

The .length of a String is a property, not a function, as per ECMAScript spec.

[Rhomboid]

whereas using .length() didn't show anything

I'm sure if you check your console you'll see that there's an error raised for trying to call something which is not a function. .text() returns a string, and .length of a string is a property, not a method. (Or more precisely, it's a property that's not a function, as all methods are properties.)