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Phuoc Nguyen
Phuoc Nguyen

Posted on • Originally published at phuoc.ng

How to read and write data to the clipboard

In modern web development, having a website or application that can interact with the user's system clipboard is essential. Luckily, JavaScript's Clipboard API makes it possible to read and write data from and to the clipboard, providing a secure way to transfer data between a web application and the operating system.

The Clipboard API is especially useful when a user wants to copy and paste data from a website or application. By enabling users to easily copy and paste data from the web application to other applications and vice versa, developers can provide a seamless user experience.

The Clipboard API can be incredibly helpful in various scenarios. For instance, imagine working on a website that allows users to upload images. With the Clipboard API, users can copy and paste images directly from their computer or other applications into your website's image uploader.
Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have already implemented the Clipboard API to allow users to share links quickly and easily. By clicking on a "Copy Link" button, the link is automatically copied to the user's clipboard, allowing them to paste it into their posts or messages.

In this series, we will explore how to interact with the Clipboard API in JavaScript, take a deep dive into the API, and learn how to read and write data to the clipboard. We will also cover important security concerns and best practices when working with the Clipboard API. By the end of this series, you'll be able to use Clipboard API in real-world examples.


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Top comments (4)

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Martin Falk Johansson

I find that this article would be much better if you would have included examples of how to actually use the API. Even if this is a series, this very article just says "the clipboard api exists" and that is not very useful.

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phuocng profile image
Phuoc Nguyen

The post is only the first introduction of the series. Stay tuned :)

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lior_amsalem profile image
Lior Amsalem

nice! good job

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phuocng profile image
Phuoc Nguyen

Thank you. More posts in the series are coming soon! Hopefully they are useful to you.