Binding data to the DOM in Backbone - backbone.js

Question

Here's my Backbone.js:
(function() {
window.App = {
Models: {},
Collections: {},
Views: {},
Router: {}
};
window.template = function(id) {
return _.template( $('#' + id).html() );
};
var vent = _.extend({}, Backbone.Events);
App.Router = Backbone.Router.extend({
routes: {
'' : 'index',
'*other' : 'other'
},
index: function() {
},
other: function() {
}
});
App.Models.Main = Backbone.Model.extend({
defaults : {
FName: ''
}
});
App.Collections.Mains = Backbone.Collection.extend({
model: App.Models.Main,
initialize: function() {
this.fetch({
success: function(data) {
console.log(data.models);
}
});
},
url: '../leads/main_contact'
});
App.Views.Mains = Backbone.View.extend({
tagName: 'ul',
initialize: function() {
this.collection.on('reset', this.render, this);
console.log(this.collection);
},
render: function() {
return this.collection.each(this.addOne, this);
},
addOne: function(main) {
var mainC = new App.Views.Main({ model: main});
this.$el.append(mainC.render().el);
return this;
}
});
App.Views.Main = Backbone.View.extend({
tagName: 'li',
template: template('mainContactTemplate'),
render: function () {
this.$el.html(this.template(this.model.toJSON()));
return this;
}
});
mains = new App.Collections.Mains();
main = new App.Views.Main({ collection: mains});
new App.Router;
Backbone.history.start();
})();
What I want to do is have the data returned in the ul to be bound to a DOM element called $('#web-leads'). How do I do that, given this code? Incidentally, I've already posted about this here and tried to follow the first answer and the second answer combined. But I still don't get HTML and data bound to the DOM. The data is returning from the server correctly in my collection, so I know that's not the problem. Don't worry about the router stuff. That's for later.

Answer 1

Generally in Backbone you don't put data on DOM elements: you put it in views that wrap that DOM element.
That being said, if you really want to store data on the element, jQuery has a function for that:
$('#web-leads').data('someKey', 'yourData');
Then you can retrieve that data with:
$('#web-leads').data('someKey');
* EDIT *
In a comments discussion with the OP it became apparent that the real goal was simply to append a view's element to an element on the page. If the element being appended to is #web-leads, then this can be accomplished with:
$('#web-leads').append(theView.render().el);