Attr on a "javascript:" will return a function in IE 7

[Kumu]

Came across issue when trying to calling: $("#dropdownid").attr("onchange") in IE7

$("#dropdownid").attr("onchange") value is "javascript:dosomething()"

on other browsers it returns a string of "javascript:dosomething()" which is the correct behavior defined in the documents, but when running this function in IE7 it returns a function:

function onchange(){
  dosomething();
}

Suggestion:

ret = elem.getAttribute( name );
if(typeof ret === "function"){
  //use getAttributeNode only if needed due to efficiency 
  ret = elem.getAttributeNode(name);
}

[Rick Waldron]

inline event handlers are treated as properties, not attributes.

[dmethvin]

The specific issue here is that IE7 treats attributes and properties the same, kind of like jQuery itself did before 1.6.

I don't understand what kind of code is looking at the onchange attribute string and trying to do something with it. If you just need to know if one is present, that is still possible given what is currently returned. Otherwise, this probably applies: ​http://docs.jquery.com/Won't_Fix#Inline_Event_Handlers