[jquery] When to choose mouseover() and hover() function?

What are the differences between jQuery .mouseover() and .hover() functions? If they are totally same why jQuery uses both?

.hover() function accepts two function arguments, one for mouseenter event and one for mouseleave event.

You can try it out http://api.jquery.com/mouseover/ on the jQuery doc page. It's a nice little, interactive demo that makes it very clear and you can actually see for yourself.

In short, you'll notice that a mouse over event occurs on an element when you are over it - coming from either its child OR parent element, but a mouse enter event only occurs when the mouse moves from the parent element to the element.

From the offical docs: (http://api.jquery.com/hover/)

The .hover() method binds handlers for both mouseenter and mouseleave events. You can use it to simply apply behavior to an element during the time the mouse is within the element.

As you can read at http://api.jquery.com/mouseenter/

The mouseenter JavaScript event is proprietary to Internet Explorer. Because of the event's general utility, jQuery simulates this event so that it can be used regardless of browser. This event is sent to an element when the mouse pointer enters the element. Any HTML element can receive this event.