Losing data with jQuery.data()

Question

I'm working on a utility web app that to help manipulate some domain-specific XML data.

The flow goes like this:

1. Load XML file
2. Parse XML file using the browser's native XML objects (not jQuery!) and convert into JavaScript object.
3. Store resulting object using $(document).data()
4. Iterate through object and extract additional information, storing that in another $(document).data() slot

#4 takes a fair amount of time, so I'm using window.setTimeout() to split the work up into chunks.

Here is the function:

function explodeDataStep(index, max) {
    var data = $(document).data('data');
    var lists = $(document).data('lists');
    $debug('explodeDataStep', index, $(document).data('data'), $.data(document));

    var count = 0;
    for (index; index < data.vehicles.length; index++) {
        var vehicle = data.vehicles[index];

        if ($.inArray(vehicle.make, lists.make) < 0) lists.make.push(vehicle.make);
        if ($.grep(lists.model, function(v) { return v.make == vehicle.make && v.model == vehicle.model; }).length == 0) lists.model.push({ make: vehicle.make, model: vehicle.model });
        if ($.inArray(vehicle.module, lists.module) < 0) lists.module.push(vehicle.module);
        if ($.inArray(vehicle.doorlock, lists.doorlock) < 0) lists.doorlock.push(vehicle.doorlock);
        if ($.inArray(vehicle.doorlockCombo, lists.doorlockCombo) < 0) lists.doorlockCombo.push(vehicle.doorlockCombo);
        if ($.inArray(vehicle.tHarness, lists.tHarness) < 0) lists.tHarness.push(vehicle.tHarness);

        count++;
        if (count >= max) {
            index++;
            updateExplodeDataStatus(index);
            window.setTimeout(explodeDataStep, 10, index, max);
            return;
        }
    }
    finishExplodeData();
}

For some reason, when the index gets up to around 480, I'm noticing that some of the data stored in $(document).data('data') just disappears, and I can't for the life of me figure out why.

So, here are some questions that may lead to the answer:

• Is using window.setTimeout() in this fashion an incredibly bad idea?
• Are there limits as to how much can be stored using jQuery.data()? My XML file is ~100KB.

Answer 1

In this case I would not use jQuery and instead store your information is native JavaScript objects.

Answer 2

This is embarrassing...

I was using Array.splice() elsewhere in my code. That'll do it. Yep.