How do I serialize a DOM to XML text, using JavaScript, in a cross browser way?

Question

I have an XML object (loaded using XMLHTTPRequest's responseXML). I have modified the object (using jQuery) and would like to store it as text in a string.

There is apparently a simple way to do it in Firefox et al:

var xmlString = new XMLSerializer().serializeToString( doc );

(from rosettacode )

But how does one do it in IE6 and other browsers (without, of course, breaking Firefox)?

Huppie · Accepted Answer · 2009-08-15 12:39:41Z

35

You can use doc.xml in internet exlporer.

You'll get something like this:

function xml2Str(xmlNode) {
   try {
      // Gecko- and Webkit-based browsers (Firefox, Chrome), Opera.
      return (new XMLSerializer()).serializeToString(xmlNode);
  }
  catch (e) {
     try {
        // Internet Explorer.
        return xmlNode.xml;
     }
     catch (e) {  
        //Other browsers without XML Serializer
        alert('Xmlserializer not supported');
     }
   }
   return false;
}

Found it here.

edited Aug 15, 2009 at 12:39

answered Sep 4, 2008 at 10:42

Huppie

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5 Comments

Marcel Popescu Over a year ago

Thanks... I finally found this after two days of searching. (It took me a while to realize that .xml was simply not there for FF/Chrome, I had assumed I was doing something wrong.)

cburgmer Over a year ago

Webkit currently has a bug (e.g. in Chrome 19) and will not return correct XML: xmlNode = document.createElement('img'); xmlNode.src = "test.png" xmlNode.alt = "test" (new XMLSerializer()).serializeToString(xmlNode); Returns: "<img src="test.png" alt="test">"

Esailija Over a year ago

@cburgmer that's not an xml node

cburgmer Over a year ago

@Esailija I don't understand, what is it then? I expect XMLSerializer to serialize xmlNode into <img src… /> (note the trailing slash)

Esailija Over a year ago

@cburgmer it's a html node, you created it using a html document. XML nodes don't have properties like .src. See what an actual xml element has with: console.dir( document.implementation.createDocument( null, "xml", null ).createElement("img") )

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