Javascript – DataTables: Uncaught TypeError: Cannot read property ‘defaults’ of undefined

The usual way to check if the value of a property is the special value undefined, is:

if(o.myProperty === undefined) {
  alert("myProperty value is the special value `undefined`");
}

To check if an object does not actually have such a property, and will therefore return undefined by default when you try and access it:

if(!o.hasOwnProperty('myProperty')) {
  alert("myProperty does not exist");
}

To check if the value associated with an identifier is the special value undefined, or if that identifier has not been declared. Note: this method is the only way of referring to an undeclared (note: different from having a value of undefined) identifier without an early error:

if(typeof myVariable === 'undefined') {
  alert('myVariable is either the special value `undefined`, or it has not been declared');
}

In versions of JavaScript prior to ECMAScript 5, the property named "undefined" on the global object was writeable, and therefore a simple check foo === undefined might behave unexpectedly if it had accidentally been redefined. In modern JavaScript, the property is read-only.

However, in modern JavaScript, "undefined" is not a keyword, and so variables inside functions can be named "undefined" and shadow the global property.

If you are worried about this (unlikely) edge case, you can use the void operator to get at the special undefined value itself:

if(myVariable === void 0) {
  alert("myVariable is the special value `undefined`");
}

This problem is usually due to the map div not being rendered before the javascript runs that needs to access it.

You should put your initialization code inside an onload function or at the bottom of your HTML file, just before the tag, so the DOM is completely rendered before it executes (note that the second option is more sensitive to invalid HTML).

Note, as pointed out by matthewsheets this also could be cause by the div with that id not existing at all in your HTML (the pathological case of the div not being rendered)

Adding code sample from wf9a5m75's post to put everything in one place:

<script type="text/javascript">

function initialize() {
    var latlng = new google.maps.LatLng(-34.397, 150.644);
    var myOptions = {
        zoom: 8,
        center: latlng,
        mapTypeId: google.maps.MapTypeId.ROADMAP
    };
    var map = new google.maps.Map(document.getElementById("map_canvas"),
            myOptions);
}
google.maps.event.addDomListener(window, "load", initialize);

</script>