jQuery by ID helper

/**
Just some helpers to accelerate jQuery object instantiation, when we are using element IDs or classes as references.
It seems stupid, but using these helpers actually boosts the performance a lot.
Try the code below on the jQuery homepage, and see the results by yourself (must have Firebug installed)
*/



// Helper for getting by ID
function $id(id, context) {
    return $((context || document).getElementById(id));
}

// Helper for getting by class name - OK, this helper is a lot better on Firefox, but in Chrome it performs about the same as without it
if (document.getElementsByClassName) {
    function $class(klass, context) {
        return $((context || document).getElementsByClassName(klass));
    }
}
else {
    function $class(klass, context) {
        return $(context || document).find('.' + klass);
    }
}



console.log("\n\n\n----------\n");



console.time('ID: without helper');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    $("#jq-interior");
}
console.timeEnd('ID: without helper');

console.time('ID: with helper');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    $id("jq-interior");
}
console.timeEnd('ID: with helper');

console.time('ID: native');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    document.getElementById("jq-interior");
}
console.timeEnd('ID: native');



console.time('Class: without helper');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    $(".jq-enhanced");
}
console.timeEnd('Class: without helper');

console.time('Class: with helper');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    $class("jq-enhanced");
}
console.timeEnd('Class: with helper');

console.time('Class: native');
for (var i = 0; i < 10000; i++) {
    document.getElementsByClassName("jq-enhanced");
}
console.timeEnd('Class: native');