Targeting a disappearing element for its CSS

[phenomlab]

Have you ever tried to target dynamic elements such as as Tooltips under bootstrap only to find that they disappear when you try to inspect them? You’re not alone.

Fortunately (and inspired by this post), there is a workaround in case you find yourself in a similar boat.

The Problem

You locate the popover element you’d like to change, right-click then select Inspect Element and then element itself disappears - along with any hope of you finding the related CSS.

The Solution

We need to use a bit of ingenuity here. This is where the browser (in the case of Webkit, such as Google Chrome etc) debug facilities come in handy.

1. Fire up the page where the element appears that you want to inspect
2. Press F8 to open the developer tools
3. Click on the console tab
4. Paste the below into the console

setTimeout(function(){debugger;},5000);

Note that 5000 is adjustable (and the inspiration for the Mission: impossible - Rogue Nation sequence ) It should look like the below - essentially, 5000 is 5 seconds… Now you see (hopefully) the paradigm.

5. Now press enter
6. You have 5 seconds before the debugger will launch, which should be enough time for you to active the element you want to target

7. Wait until the debugger fires

8. Now select the element you want to inspect in the usual manner

9. Expose the CSS as required

Customise as necessary

[DownPW]

Nice. Very good tips Mark