Try a little different setup:
var canvas = myCanvas; //store canvas outside event loop
var isDown = false; //flag we use to keep track
var x1, y1, x2, y2; //to store the coords
// when mouse button is clicked and held
$('#myCanvas').on('mousedown', function(e){
if (isDown === false) {
isDown = true;
var pos = getMousePos(canvas, e);
x1 = pos.x;
y1 = pos.y;
}
});
// when mouse button is released (note: window, not canvas here)
$(window).on('mouseup', function(e){
if (isDown === true) {
var pos = getMousePos(canvas, e);
x2 = pos.x;
y2 = pos.y;
isDown = false;
//we got two sets of coords, process them
alert(x1 + ',' + y1 + ',' +x2 + ',' +y2);
}
});
// get mouse pos relative to canvas (yours is fine, this is just different)
function getMousePos(canvas, evt) {
var rect = canvas.getBoundingClientRect();
return {
x: evt.clientX - rect.left,
y: evt.clientY - rect.top
};
}
So why do we listen to mouse up on the window? If you mouse outside the canvas and then release the mouse button, the event won't be registered with the canvas. So we need to listen to a global event such as the window.
Since we already have marked our isDown at the mouse down event we know that that the following mouse up "belongs" to the canvas (as we check the isDown flag).