Data attributes versus the programmatic API

Bootstrap offers the ability to use its plugins entirely through HTML markup. This means that in order to use most of the plugins, you do not need to write a single line of JavaScript. Using data attributes is the recommended approach and should be your first option when using Bootstrap plugins.

For example, to allow an alert element to be dismissible, you'll add the data-dismiss="alert" attribute to either a button or anchor element, as illustrated in the following code:

<div class="alert alert-danger"> 
    <button data-dismiss="alert" class="close" type="button">×</button> 
    <strong>Warning</strong> Shuttle launch in t-minus 10 seconds. 
</div> 

You also have the option to perform the same action using the programmatic API via JavaScript. The following code uses jQuery to close a specific alert element when the user clicks on a button:

<button...