title: Get selected value of a dropdown's item using jQuery
body: <p>How can I get the selected value of a dropdown box using jQuery?<br>
  I tried using</p>
  
  <pre><code>var value = $('#dropDownId').val();
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>and</p>
  
  <pre><code>var value = $('select#dropDownId option:selected').val();
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>but both return an empty string.</p>