jQuery .attr() and value

Question

I want to make the following use .attr();

selectbox.options[selectbox.selectedIndex].value

sadly,

selectbox.options[selectbox.selectedIndex].attr("value")

is not the same, and seems to defeat the purpose of the .attr altogether. My main question is: How should one use nested .attr()s?

Answer 1

To get the value of any type of input element (including <textarea> and <select>) use .val():

var value = $(selectbox).val();

The .attr() translation would roughly be:

$(selectBox).find(":selected").attr("value");

....but just use .val() :)

The basic problem is that .attr() is a jQuery method. It's on jQuery objects, not on DOM elements directly, the same goes for almost all jQuery methods and plugins.