what mistake am I making?

Question

help

app.js

var secret = prompt("What is the secret password?");
while(secret !=="sesame"){
document.write("You know the secret password. Welcome.");
  secret+=1;
}

index.html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <title>JavaScript Loops</title>
</head>
<body>
<script src="app.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

Answer 1 · 2015-08-11T17:03:02Z

August 11, 2015 5:03pm

Devanshi,

What we want to happen with this code is for there to be an initial prompt to the user to enter a secret password, and until they enter it correctly, we want them to continue to be prompted for it.

First, we have our variable secret set up to store the value that gets entered into our prompt. Next, we create a while loop that checks to see if the user has entered the correct password, and if they have not, will show the prompt again. Once the user clears the while loop, i.e. once they have successfully entered the password, the loop will break and our code will move on to the next line, which will be when we finally write to the document that they know the secret password.

Let's take a look at this in code:

// here we set up our variable and set it equal to the prompt that asks for the password
var secret = prompt( "What is the secret password?" );

// here we create our "while" loop, that says "while secret does not equal 'sesame', prompt the user to enter the password again"
while( secret !== "sesame" ) {
  // by setting the variable secret equal to our prompt again inside the "while" loop, we successfully loop the user into our prompt until they enter the correct password!
  secret = prompt("What is the secret password?");
}

// once the user has entered the correct password into the prompt, the loop will pass, and we will reach this code
document.write("You know the secret password. Welcome.");

Hope this helps to clear things up!

Erik

Answer 2 · 2015-08-11T17:11:08Z

August 11, 2015 5:11pm

I don't think that you are using a while loop correctly. Loops in general are for repeating tasks, not for trying to find out user input and respond to it. And while they can on specific occasions, I think that instead, you need to use an if statement there instead. Observe:

var password = prompt("What is the password?")

if (password != "sesame") {
  document.write("You know the secret password. Welcome.");
} else { Do whatever }

Also, if that doesn't do what you wanted it to do, you might have wanted to make it so the password is equal to "sesame". In that case, change the not equal to(!=) to an equal to(===). Hope this helped!

Answer 3 · 2015-08-11T17:15:29Z

August 11, 2015 5:15pm

you almost have it! you just need to make a few changes.

create an empty var named secret outside of the while loop.

var secret;

create a while loop that has the prompt inside the while loop. You want the loop to continue unit the user enters sesame.

while(){
secret = prompt('what is the secret password');//this will make the prompt appear unit the condition is false
}

add the condition to the while loop

while(secret !== 'sesame')

remove the counter in the while loop.

I hope this helps.

Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Looking to learn something new?

Devanshi verma

Devanshi verma

what mistake am I making?

3 Answers

Erik McClintock

Erik McClintock

Nikhil Deorkar

Nikhil Deorkar

Jacob Mishkin

Jacob Mishkin