value

The value method has two modes of operation.
1. If called without a parameter, it will return the current value for the widget.
2. If a value is passed, this value will be set as the current value for the maskedtextbox widget.

These are demonstrated in the sample below:

<input id="maskedtextbox" />

<script type="text/javascript">
jQuery(function($) {
    var maskedTextBox = $("#maskedtextbox").shieldMaskedTextBox({
        mask: "000000",
        value: "123456"
    }).swidget();

    // this will return the current value of the widget
    alert(maskedTextBox.value());

    // this will set a value of 654321 for the maskedtextbox
    maskedTextBox.value("654321");

    // this will return the current value of the widget
    alert(maskedTextBox.value());
});
</script>