How to display loading dialog when someone clicks a specific link?

Question

I do have an URL which opens a webpage which is very slow to load and I have no control over it.

I do want to display a loading dialog when someone clicks this URL or to

Answer 1

Although ajax would be more elegant, it's possible. You have to intercept the navigation by preventing the default event, then force an update to the UI, then change the location to the destination url. Something like this:

$('#mylink').click(function(e) {
    e.preventDefault();
    var url = this.href;
    // Update the UI here
    setTimeout(function() {
        // This is a trick to force a repaint
        window.location.href = url;
    },0);
});