- Paperback: 300 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.61 x 9.18 x 7.38
- Publisher: Que; 1st edition (June 27, 2002)
- ISBN: 0789727803
- Average Customer Review:
Based on 3 reviews.
Write a review.
- Amazon.com Sales Rank: 123,193
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Softpanorama |
May the source be with you, but remember the KISS principle ;-)
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JavaScript is the most popular programming language on the Internet. It's not as difficult to learn as some other programming languages like C++ or Java. But it's still a powerful language that you can use to learn programming, to create interactive web-based applications that make your web sites more useful to visitors. Microsoft provides a decent interpreter and debugger with IE5 so this is essentially a free educational environment suitable to novices.
JavaScript is a developing language and the latest version is 1.5. That means that books that are two or more years old do not describe the version supported by IE5.5 and Netscape 6. Sure, you can live with than, but still it's better to be aware about new features in the language. Actually language was substantially improved along the road and IMHO 1.5 is the first really decent version of the language.
I am convinced that it is an excellent introductory programming language. Moreover Microsoft introduced it as a shell language in Windows Scripting Host. See my JavaScript Links for details.
But the problem is that there are no really good introductory book on JavaScript. Average yes, overhyped (Definitive Guide ;-) yes, but really good -- no. Paul Wilton Beginning Javascript shows some promise for introductory courses and I consider it is probably one of the best, but we still need a second edition to polish the book in order better explain language constructs for novices, to improve exercises, etc.
Nikolai Bezroukov
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Amazon.com Beginning JavaScript Second Edition Books Paul Wilton
Beginning JavaScript Second Edition (Paperback)
ISBN: 0764555871
DOM Scripting: Web Design with JavaScript and the Document Object Model
by Jeremy Keith (Paperback
- September 20, 2005)
ISBN: 1590595335
DOM Scripting: Web Design with JavaScript and the Document Object Model (Paperback)
1590595335
Mastering Microsoft VBA (Mastering) (Paperback)
Paperback: 707 pages
Publisher: Sybex; 2 edition (October 31, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN: 0782144365
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Solutions to some of the
nonstandard problems you may face, July 16, 2002
Some of the problems solved are: * How to create a pop under window. In general, the statement of the problem and the solution take up less
than three pages. With very little code to explain, the solutions are easy
to understand. I have been teaching and programming in Javascript for over
six years and yet I learned several things from the book. To sweeten the
deal even further, all of the source code, graphics and other data used
in the book are freely available from the companion web site ... |
Hierarchical Menus with the Underrated style.display Object--You can better manage your Web real estate using hierarchical menus. Learn how with these JavaScript examples by Bill Pena, coauthor of Designing with JavaScript, 2nd Edition.
Managing Enterprise Systems with the Windows Script Host
Based on 4 reviews.
Write a review.Mastering JavaScript Premium Edition
Excellent scripting book especially for Sys Admins, July 7, 2000The first thing I noticed about this book was the fact that all the examples are illustrated in both VB Script and JScript - take your pick! If you know some C++ you will easily pick up JScript.
The book was easy to follow and was well structured. Within a week or so from being a scripting novice I was able to write useful and productive scripts such as automating FTP jobs and working with the registry - the book also serves as an excellent reference as well as a tutorial.
One thing to note about this book is that you don't need Windows 2000 to run all of the examples on but it does go into ADSI and LDAP in later chapters.
There are not that many books out there that
cover the Windows Script Host for both JScript and VB Script - this one does,
and does it well.
Excellent!, July 7, 2000
Reviewer:
John Edwards (see more about me)
The best scripting book I've found anywhere! Extremely thorough and detailed.
Part 1 features a fast-paced introduction to Windows scripting and core functionality of VBScript/JScript. All the essentials were covered well.
Part 2 is very detailed on creating scripts and scripting files. The best coverage of creating script jobs that I've found anywhere. Good material on managing files, I/O, drives, printers, application startup, Windows registery and event logging. I wish there was a bit more on event logs but the coverage was good in all on this subject.
Part 3 zeroes in on Active Directory & ADSI programming. Really good! Side-by-side scripting examples in both JScript and VBScript are phenomenal. I learned a lot. Covers task scheduling, managing computers, managing logon logoff startup shutdown, schema, services, shared directories, groups, users, more!
Part IV has networking libraries that you can actually use to perform advanced tasks quickly. I have used these in my work now everday.
Over all a really good book that deserves 5 stars
for solid technical coverage.
Comprehensive, excellent for beginners and intermediate, September 15,
2000
Good but it is a Esposito's Book Look Alike & $20 More, September 9,
2000
Not bad...not good either!, September 23, 2000Also, I have found a couple errors in this book. For example, page 63 regarding 'Variable Scope' and page 67 (Questions section) #20 is incorrect.
It's a ok book if you have a idea of object-oriented programming, but I advise this is not a good book for the absolute novice in programming!
Much Better than Oreilly series or Javascript Bible, August 9, 2000I am really looking forward for books on XML from the same
publishers. Keep it up !
**+ Javascript The Definitive Guide (only on CD) Intermediate reference (actually only second edition is available on CD, the third edition is slightly better, but both are generally very disappointing -- examples are junk and the language coverage is too academic). Can be considered over hyped junk.
Reviewer: A reader from Washington, DC
This book was sufficient for me to get going with a language that is structured very differently from the traditional languages that I learned back in the dark ages. It's not designed as a comprehensive reference, although I've been using it as my sole Javascript reference for the past year. Rather, it teaches by having the reader learn to create building-blocks -- sections of code that will accomplish something useful -- and then goes on to show how to integrate those into larger projects. I didn't actually find the larger projects useful in and of themselves, but as examples of good Javascript code they were worth reading through.I read about half of the book straight through, and then started skipping around as I needed to learn specific techniques. It works adequately that way, but in fact it is so full of little tricks -- some of which aren't even presented as such, but are just built into the examples -- that it will really repay anyone with the discipline to read it straight through. (I looked at a script used by the Adobe site that I wanted to emulate, but thought it looked kludgy and there MUST be a better way to do it. I spent several hours experimenting with document objects and attributes before finding the answer. Then in browsing Lemay's book for something else, I stumbled across the exact same technique being used in one of her examples. If only I had sat down and read that chapter earlier!)
The one shortcoming with the book, and the only reason I'm going to knock my rating down to four stars instead of five, is that the reference sections on document objects and properties should be more complete.
Randy Steer
Paul Wilton participated in the writing Professional Javascript book from Wrox and a couple of VB/VBScript books. This book provides a beginner tutorial in the JavaScript language, hopefully teaching programming concepts along the way.
From the Publisher
This book is for anyone who's interested in web programming - from the
amateur home user who wants to enhance his home page to the aspiring professional
developer who wants to add another tool to his belt. Only some HTML knowledge
is assumed - no prior programming experience is required for this book.
???+ Javascript Unleashed Alternative Intermediate to Advanced level course.
The second edition of Teach Yourself JavaScript is not only updated for the latest version of the language - it's also much improved from the previous version, with more examples and better organization.
When JavaScript was first introduced, it made Web pages interactive - and got me excited about programming for the first time in years. It's a fun language to learn and use, whether you're an experienced programmer or a beginner. I wrote this book to try to pass on some of this excitement. This book starts with the basics, and ends with games and applications that take full advantage of JavaScript. If you create Web pages, this book will help you add fun and functionality with JavaScript.
A great JavaScript intro for experienced programmers., March 19, 2000
Reviewer:
Dr. Robert C.A. Goff, MCSD (see more about me) from
With many years of programming experience in VB, I needed a simple discussion
of the basic syntax of JavaScript, and I needed it fast. This book hit the spot.
There are errors in the sample code, as there are in every IT book I've ever
read (including a few rare errors in the Wrox books!). This one is not too bad
on that account. The text is tight and readable, and the examples clear
and fairly well focused. It naturally lacks the depth required to build complex
JavaScript applications, but that's not its goal.
If you already understand programming structures, and just need to learn how JavaScript goes about it, this is the perfect book. If you're just starting out, this book will get you started on the right foot, but you'll need more than 24 hours to master the art of programming. I was actually pleased with the author's restraint in limiting the discussion and examples to essentials. By avoiding the temptation to include "cool tricks" in the examples, the focus on core concepts is strengthened. This is a well done book for its declared purpose.
Great for learning and novice programmers, January 7, 2000
Reviewer: Ted Parton from
This book is excellent for introducing the reader to JavaScript. It starts off
by explaning some of the differences between Java and JavaScript, along with
the origins. The first two parts (or sections) of the book are really spent
introducing the user to JavaScript and definately should be read by beginners.
The book is divided into 24 quick 1 hour segments, which is perfect for intermediate to advanced programmers as they can skip ahead to the sections that really talk about using JavaScript. But this book will be most appealing to those still new to developing web sites and are wanting to add in JavaScript functions. The examples are good and demonstrate how you can go about achieving want you want JavaScript to do.
Ultimately you should get this book if you are new to JavaScript and need to learn it fairly quickly. However, you will probably want to pick up a more detailed book later on as a reference guide if you plan on doing much coding in JavaScript.
I have a rather old version (JavaScript Handbook, 1996) and it's not bad.
Decent level of attention to the language itself. For example language operators
and control structures are explained well. That's what I expect of any decent
introductory JavaScript book.
It is not for beginners, but the best for the next step up, May 28, 2000
Reviewer:
Johnny Liu (see more about me) from Jersey City, NJ
This book is not for someone who is an absolute beginner to scripting or programming.
I would only recommend it for someone who has some experience with scripting
and programming - you don't need much, but you do need some in order to fully
enjoy this book.
When I bought this book, I had already read a slimmer, truly beginner JavaScript book, "Teach Yourself JavaScript 1.3 in 24 Hours" by SAMS. The SAMS book taught me the basic concepts of JavaScript and gave me a good foundation in Document Object Model, syntax, scripting logic, etc. With that knowledge already, the Goodman, JavaScript Bible was fully appreciated.
The JavaScript Bible is the best book around on the subject
for an intermediate beginner - I mean someone who is still a beginner to JavaScript,
but not an absolute beginner. When you are at this stage, buy this book. It
is the best learning tutorial at that stage. After reading this I intend to
buy the O'Reilly JavaScript book for reference and comparison. I would not recommend
the O'Reilly book as the proper learning tutorial for the intermediate beginner,
because unlike the JavaScript Bible, the O'Reilly book is written for those
who are quite programming and scripting saavy. The O'Reilly book is worth purchasing
for reference after reading the JavaScript Bible. The O'Reilly book is also
worth buying later in order to find any points that The JavaScript Bible may
have not included (and points that the O'Reilly book may have not included but
are found in the JavaScript Bible). The JavaScript Bible is a good teacher and
a very good reference book. The O'Reilly book is a OK teacher and an excellent
reference book. --This text refers to the
Paperback edition.
I don't know what book everyone else was reading but..., October 15,
2000
Reviewer: A reader from Delray Beach, FL
this book as someone else already stated 'sucks'. If you've got time to waste
reading through this guy's twaddle more power to you. The examples are poorly
presented. Mr. Goodman, the author, seems to enjoy burying useful information
within his long explanations of extraneous data.
This guy does an excellent job of blending together a lot of concepts (sometimes unrelated to the current discussion) and then burying the core concept he's discussing! Unbelievable.
If you are still thinking about buying this book, do yourself a favor, when you're at the book store look in the index or table of contents of this book and then go to the page and read the authors discussion/explanation. Read it carefully, if you don't fully understand the concept then look for a reference to what you don't understand in the book keep doing this until you fully understand the concept you were originally interested in. Once you've done that if the time it took you to *fully* understand the concept was acceptable by all means buy the book, but if you're like me you'll find the time invested in finding useful information in this book is unacceptable.
FYI- I've read a lot of computer books in my life this ranks right up there with the worst, a five star waste of time. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Paperback - 497 pages 2nd Bk&Dk edition (March 1999)
Microsoft Press; ISBN: 0735605637 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.41 x 9.46 x 7.47
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 4,586
Avg. Customer Review:
a readable, accessible primer-to-intermediate
guide
July 11, 1999
Reviewer: t.d.s@mindspring.com
from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
True, this is not a great reference, though the CD contains great reference material and there are www links scattered liberally throughout the text. For more general DHTML references one would do better with either Goodman's "Dynamic HTML: The Definitive Guide" (O'Reilly & Assoc., 1998) for a cross-platform perspective or Francis et al. "IE5 DHTML Prog. Ref. 2nd Ed." (Wrox Press, 1999) for a very IE5-centric text.
What this book excels at is showing you how to do stuff with DHTML, combining (Java)script-ing, CSS, and touching on XML. It doesn't go deeply into any particular subject, nor does it skim too lightly, and its "portal" approach almost guarantees there are links to more information.
Netscape-centric developers will find this text off-putting to offensive. This book stresses - though is not exclusive to - IE4 and 5. As Microsoft and Netscape converge on the W3C DHTML specification we can hope browser-specific DHTML books will be replaced by more standardized texts.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is at least slightly familiar with the technologies and wants to put them together quickly to create eye-catching sites. Its Javascript tutorial is weak - if you're not already familiar with Javascript or its siblings (JScript, ECMAScript) start elsewhere then return to this book for practical uses of Javascript.
***** Good training for beginners and information for advanced January 8, 2000
Reviewer: jnz08 from Honolulu, Hawaii
I disagree that this book covers only the very basic. It begins with a great overview of HTML (though I'm a pretty good web programmer, I read the HTML chapters and found some things that I did not know before)and then covers scripting quite well. It also has a good overview of css, including some screenshot differences between how IE and Netscape display styles. After this, it gets into more esoteric subjects like data binding, scriptlets, and font embedding. It also has a chapter or so for XML, talks about javascript error handling, and has a big section on cross browser coding.
I liked this book-I thought it was very well written. It definitely wasn't a hard core reference-but it points you to specific places in all sorts of real references, most on the net, though it also recommends some real reference books.
The BEST tutorial/learning
book on HTML/DHTMLAugust
7, 1999This is the best book I've seen for learning DHTML. I taught for years and the author has a gift for explaining both simple and complex ideas in a very readable but information-rich format. Like a reviewer below, I also found the book to be full of tons of links to useful online references and the CD to have a lot of useful info/demos. As far as the book's coverage of different browsers, I thought that it covered the most important issues - what does not work in different browsers. There are even a few places where it deals with Opera and things like spiders and text only browsers, though of course most of the coverage is of Netscape and Internet Explorer.
Haven't read the book yet, but I took Dave Thau's class, November 16,
2000
Reviewer:
mslaura (see more about me) from San Francisco, CA USA
Dave Thau is amazing. I am dying to get this book. I took his JavaScript class
in San Francisco and he managed to make the subject not only easy to learn,
but fun! I had some previous programming classes and came away confused and
frustrated at the inability of my instructors to convey the basic principles
involved. In Dave's class I learned not only all the basic principles of programming,
but how to execute them successfully using JavaScript. Invaluable. If this book
is anything like his classes you can't pass it up.
A good instructional and reference book, October 25, 2000
Reviewer:
water_monkey (see more about me) from La Crescenta, Ca USA
Even though JavaScript is not a new technology (in term of the Internet world),
it is often difficult to find well written books that are easy to understand
about the subject. Those that are well written, good instructional books, tend
to be poor reference books (with the ability to find answers without reading
the whole chapter0.
"The Book of JavaScript..." does a good job at both. If you need the instructional "how-to" type of book you will find this book is excellent. Once you feel comfortable with JavaScript you will be able to use this book as a reference.
This book does a good job at combining both worlds. There are better books for instruction and better books for reference (JavaScript: The Definitive Guide O'Reilly Press), but as an all-in-one book this succeeds where others haven't.
Thau is a wizard, November 1, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from Brooklyn, NY USA
The Book of Javascript makes the intimidating fun and approachable. I highly
recommend this book.
This book is excellent, February 26, 2000The book will help you to get started very, very quickly. There are great examples, showing you exactly what you can do with JavaScript.
I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending this book
- my copy has yet to see my shelf!
A handy day-to-day reference document, December 24, 1999
Reviewer: Joel Howe from
I found this book to be
very useful. There are many examples that are helpful in developing your
JavaScript skills, and there are several more advanced sections that include
explaining how JavaScript can be used to link with Java and ActiveX.
This book truly helped me develop from a beginner at JavaScript to an expert.
My experience before this book was that I was an HTML expert, but didn't have
a clue about JavaScript. I am currently doing some web page development work
and I routinely reference this book to refresh my memory. I highly recommend
this book, though it may be getting out of date a bit, but since there are still
many people using Version 4 browsers, this book will ensure you are writing
JavaScript code that can be used by most anyone, not just IE5.0 users.
Toss the Rest -- This is the Best, October 2, 1999The Kent brothers REALLY explain JavaScript and and provide a good introduction to the nuances (= annoyances) of object based syntax. If you think you have to buy four or five bad references to find a good one, this is the ONE good one on JS. (Better than anything in the O'Reilly catalog.)
This is THE book many developers turn to in lieu of sharp
objects and alcohol when fumbling with JavaScript. Why? It's in English and
is well organized. Plus, instead of clunky CDs, you can access/copy the book's
scripts over the web as you read the book.
This book defines the top of its category., August 9, 1999
Reviewer: A reader from
Out of a large library of JavaScript books, this one is the only one that never
gets shelved. I've seen novices find out how to do all the things they were
looking for, and I've personally used it to expand my own knowledge. If I were
to own just one JS book, this'd be it.
THE book for beginners, May 23, 2000
Reviewer:
Tobias Schmidt (see more about me) from
I bought three books about JavaScript to get me started and I have to say that
this was by far the best. The other two books I bought were the Visual Quickstart
Guide by Peachpit Press and O'Reilly's Definitive JavaScript Guide. I used the
Quickstart Guide to get a basic understanding for the language but soon noticed
that I didn't actually learn it, but was rather just copying the examples in
the book. With the Definitive Guide the exact opposite was the case. It was
simply to hard to understand as a complete novice.
The official Netscape Guide is the ideal book for starters: It takes you through the learning process step by step, starting with the easy stuff and then becoming harder and more complex. It also shows you the annoying parts about JavaScript (browser incompatibilities) and how to deal with them.
Overall an absolutely cool book to get you started!
Reviewer: Steven Jarvis fromFayetteville, Arkansas
This book is an apple, not an orange, so don't call it an orange. It's not a comprehensive guide to the esoteric ins and outs of JavaScript. That's what O'Reilly's JavaScript: the Definitive Guide is for. This book --- like all the books in the excellent Visual QuickStart Guide series --- is aimed at getting you into the topic and doing stuff with it quickly. The other books like the O'Reilly book (which would leave a beginner pulling her hair out) are for later.The examples in this book show you the most common uses of JS and provide sample scripts (which are available for download on the companion web site). The newer, 3d. ed. of the book adds a significant amount of additional information, and is worth the price of admission (I also owned the 2d. ed.). It gets you doing cool stuff with Javascript quickly. That simplicity is its strength and also one of my complaints about it.
The examples are not often very flexible. They do one thing well (which is described quickly and in a manner in which you can easily understand), but its not always easy to modify the script to similar uses. And, because it's how it is, it doesn't teach you enough to understand the theory of the JS you're using, so you rarely understand how to modify those scripts. BUT, as I said above, that's beyond the scope of this book.
One example: in the doing things with windows chapter, there are scripts for opening and closing a second window from within the main window. Great scripts and they work well. But, if you want to open the new window from the main window, then close the new window from the new window (not the main window), too bad, because it doesn't show you how to do that.
But, on that point, I'm starting to lean in the direction of calling this book an orange.
For absolute beginners: it's a must, and is probably the best introduction to JavaScript. For Intermediate JavaScripters, its hit or miss, so check it out thoroughly (though it's still a great quick reference for when you forget something). For advanced JavaScript and JS applications, check out one of the O'reilly reference works.
Reviewer: A reader fromSeattle, WA
I've just started using this one myself, and so far, it's proven to be an invaluable reference. I used to think JavaScript was a difficult and laborious language to learn, especially since the only coding I know is HTML, a little BASIC and some MUSH code (I'm not a programmer, can you tell? *grin*) After paging through the first few chapters of this book, and even jumping around a bit, it's not so much of a mystery anymore, and I now have a correct perception of this popular scripting language, as well as a decent working knowledge. Following the excellent path forged by other titles in the series, this guide is written in a candid, easy to understand manner. Best of all, just like the VQS Guide to HTML4, another of my favorites recommended elsewhere on this site, it's got a companion web site with all of the samples as well as further exercises. Don't waste your time reading thick books full of information you'll never use. Try this one and get to work writing JavaScript immediately. Once you get started and become better versed in the language, you'll want to keep the book nearby as an easy to use reference source. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Paul Wilton participated in the writing (semibaked) Professional JavaScript book from Wrox and a couple of VB/VBScript books. This book provides a decent beginner tutorial in the JavaScript language, hopefully teaching programming concepts along the way. What I really like is the chapter about debugging that includes both discussion of MS debugger and (now obsolete Netscape debugger). One reviewer complains that the author is too much OO fundamentalist and that's bad, but still it's one of the best intro books available on the market.
From the Publisher
This book is for anyone who's interested in web programming - from the amateur
home user who wants to enhance his home page to the aspiring professional developer
who wants to add another tool to his belt. Only some HTML knowledge is assumed
- no prior programming experience is required
for this book.
Javascript is just an Object-Based Language?, August 27, 2001
Reviewer:
Boris Strokopytov (see more about me) from
Bronx, NY USA
Whether Javascript is OO or not OO language is maybe not that important. That's not my point. It is what it is. Perhaps it somewhere in between OO and structured languages but what bothers me that Paul Wilton didn't show to the end what great language Javascript is. From my point of view at least 2 additional chapters are needed to be added which would clarify how you CAN do OOP in Javascript and how you can define your own reusable objects in JS. On the positive note, Paul Wilton is obviously a very talented writer and his writing style and explanations are excellent. Good book for the beginners. Though, I'm repeating, this book is not going to give you a full impression about Javascript. I certainly would recommend to read everybody Hour 11 from "Teach yourself Javascript in 24 hours" (not a bad book at all, by the way!) or if you are brave enough "Javascript Objects" mentioned above. The OOP part was at least partially missing from this book.
Outstanding book!!, July 9, 2001
Reviewer:
rcbto (see more about me) from
North Huntingdon, Pa. USA
The book is laid out in a logical, orderly, consistent manner from beginning to end. First you are presented with a concept. Secondly, you are given an example of fully functional code. Thirdly that code is fully explained, line by line. The book starts out with simple concepts and builds on them almost effortlessly. First you learn the core language, then you learn how to attach the JavaScript code to the base HTML document. Later you learn how to dynamically change the HTML document "on the fly" using JavaScript. Next, you are presented with -- interaction with the user through forms, string manipulation using regular expressions, Date objects and methods, Time, and Timers, Cookies, Dynamic HTML, Databases and server side scripting. I appreciated the fact that the examples given in the first 9 chapters work in both major browsers, so you are not immediately presented with confusing browser incompatibilities that complicate the learning process, but you are made aware of the incompatibilites later in the book when you are more able to understand them.
As an aside, if I am a "little shaky" on one of the properties' or methods' syntax, and want to go back and review the concept, the material is quite easily found. The index is good as are the appendices where the DOM's and BOM's are laid out in detail.
The book is exceptionally "meaty". Don't skip over any text or explanation of code, because you will miss myriad little tidbits of information and programming techniques that will prove most valuable.
Some of the reviewers have complained about mistakes and typos. I have found most of the mistakes to be typos and the typos to be trivial matters, easily recognized. Of the 70+ examples give that I have done and experimented with up to chapter 10, only one didn't work as laid out in the book. (ch7 GlobalFunctions.htm) And from the thorough instruction given up to that point, I was able to correct the mistake and get that example to work also.
In short, using this book, you can go from knowing
nothing about JavaScript to building almost any kind of website you've ever
encountered, from storefronts, to "virtual amusement parks". My hat's off to
Mr. Wilton.
Better than a COLLEGE COURSE!!, May 17, 2001
Very Well Done!, May 25, 2001
Dis be da bestest!, May 19, 2001
Good but not great, September 20, 2000However, the reference chapters -- always the most important part of a computer text -- are fairly useless. The IE DOM is hardly explained -- it could warrant a book of its own, but this book's sketchy outline is useless. The way the appendixes are laid out is inconsistent and not visual enough -- you have to dig for the information you need (for instance, which browser supports which core object).
Finally, and worst of all, the methods reference doesn't give you any clue as to the parameters of the methods! I often find myself looking up the object description here, then going to MSDN to se what the parameters are. How silly.
3 of 5, because it *could* have been truly the only JavaScript book any serious programmer needs. As is, I'm off to the store to finally get a decent reference book. (Problem there is that all of them pre-date IE5. Where's the update, O'Reilly?)
Decent programmers reference, but not for beginners, October 11, 2000The first 750 pages or so of the book comprises the main content of the book. It is divided into 20 chapters, covering just about every aspect of the language. Some of the more advanced chapters, which I did not get a chance to read, are integrating JavaScript with Java, Server-side JavaScript, and stand-alone JavaScript via Windows Script Host. There are also chapters on integrating JavaScript with ASP, and detailed looks at a couple of fairly complex JavaScript systems including a family tree and an ecommerce tool. The problem is that there's little ramp-up. There are lots of code examples throughout the text, but they are primarily small snippets. So it's like shock therapy when you are presented with such major applications of coding without anything in between! But this has to do more with the aforementioned nature of the book in that so many different authors with different styles and topics wrote it. Some of the chapters are great; they have some really good information that any level of programmer can use. The chapters on Forms and Data, Multimedia Plugins, Debugging and Disappearing Data, and Windows and Frames were all extremely helpful. Other chapters for me were completely useless to me - they droned on and on about theoretical issues without getting into practically any coding. I had great hopes for the chapter on Privacy, Security and Cookies, as well as the one on Rapid Application Development, but neither was helpful at all.
The last 300 pages or so comprises the reference section. The reference section is great, it goes into every aspect of the language, including the core language attributes, objects and methods, and there are a ton of JavaScript/browser comparison charts that give you a great idea of what functions and features will be available to you in Netscape and IE from the earliest version to the latest.
Ultimately what you get out Professional JavaScript
really depends on your level of expertise when it comes to programming.
I do not personally have any formal training - it's all been self-taught, so
some of the more advanced stuff, though I'm sure I could learn it given the
need, was not presented in a way that instructs people who do not have a familiarity
with advanced programming techniques. There seems to be a lingo that some programmers
use when talking about programming and for people who don't have formal programming
training (or haven't been programming since they were nine) is just completely
baffling. Most O'Reilly books seem to be full of this, but then they are written
for the professional programmer. Professional JavaScript, as the name implies,
probably is as well, however, there is enough great information here for any
kind of programmer, and you just have to be selective as to which chapters you
try to tackle.
Only for intelligent people, July 11, 2000
Very Good Book if you have some programming Experience, January 3, 2000
Reviewer: Harry Yeh from
This Book and the O'Reily Book Javascript : The Definitive Guide are the best
books for Javascript in my mind. This Book teaches you all the useful techniques,
and I use the O'Reily as a reference. They have a really good section on the
OOP with Javascript.
If you are a beginner, this book is pretty good as well. This is definately a book you will pick up time and time again! For the professional Web Developer, this book will teach you techniques that you would have had to scour the internet to figure out. There aren't that many Javascript books out there that were really good in my mind but this is definately one of the best! Like other Wrox books, You DEFINATELY CAN'T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER!
Excellent Case Studies, January 15, 2000
Reviewer: Mart Poom from
Chapters 10 and 14 in this book are excellent case studies. The 'Family Tree
Photo Album' is a great real-life example of how to use JavaScript practically
and ties up what has been taught in the book.
But then chapter 14 which is "Building an e-commerce shop front" goes beyond that to create a functioning online shop. It's brilliant! I have "borrowed" it for our company site.
Thanks Wrox, this book surpasses even ASP2.0 in quality and depth. Keep up the good work.
Should be half this size - very incoherent, February 21, 2000Proliferation of subtitles, many times just for one paragraph. Index with at least one level larger font size then what even Wrox itself used in ASP 3.0 book. Table of contents stretched out to 30 pages with big font sizes which rendered it almost useless.
Way to many "buy this further Wrox book" nagging in the text up to a point where you have to start suspecting that not things are not present on purpose just to make you purchase one more.
DHTML section is way too IE biased, even with no mention of some cross browser techniques you can see working on web. Client side JavaScript case study just goes presenting IE exclusive code, then some rambling how "Netscape can't do this" and then - a miracle - cross browser JavaScript library from the net :-) FI development of cross browser code was too much for authors they why not simply presenting several good libraries and explaining their inner workings?
Authors of at least half chapters seem to be at loss about their intended audience. If this was written for web developer then one would expect to see things like events and document object model covered in one place and not scattered (as some tutorials have to do). I can't blame for this so much authors but project manager and editors (6 of them :-) Book with many authors scattered all over the planet lever or dies by good or bad project management to provide coherence.
Chapters on server side, wsh and client configuration are fine but that is no more then several hundred pages. This book really needs major rework and split into two smaller volumes of which one would really be professional (with good reference section this time) and the other would be intro review volume. Then professional part would probably get 5 stars - and wouldn't break your wrist while you try to wade through to find something.
CD-ROM - 996 pages 3rd Bk&cdr edition (June 15, 2000)
Sams; ISBN: 067231763X ; Dimensions (in inches): 2.05 x 9.01 x 7.33
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 3,801
Popular in:
Arizona State University (#12)
Great for getting you started, but..., October 11, 20001) if you've done any programming in another language before, you will find the first couple of hundred pages heavy going, as it explains very basic concepts in excessive detail. But you still need to read these chapters as a few things come up which are peculiar to JavaScript.
2) It's just plain wrong, or incomplete in places. For instance, the browser-detection example given doesn't actually work because of some basic errors in the code. And it neglects to mention a lot of the vital peculiarities where Netscape's JavaScript and IE's JScript diverge in their behaviour. If the book is to be believed you'd think all Javascript 1.2 code would work on the latest Netscape and Microsoft browsers. It won't. It's just not that easy unfortunately.
3) Good for learning, but not much use as a "reference". Hard to find the info you want while you're coding, and when you do find it it's frequently too sketchy to give you any insight into your problem.
So don't rely on this book as your only JavaScript reference. You will have to look elsewhere to find out the truth and get your scripts working properly. Particularly if you want your code to work in Explorer.
Just get it!, August 1, 2000
Reviewer:
Tomohiro Noda (see more about me) from
It's exactly what I wanted! There are many points I recommend this book to you.
Anyway, it's worthy of $50.
Great book for heavy duty programmers!, October 15, 1999
Reviewer: A reader from
Unlike the first 3 reviewers, I am a software engineer who LIKES TO PROGRAM.
My complaint with other Javascript books is that they are too lightweight
and there is not enough information besides how to make cute web pages.
I consulted this book frequently during the development of a large project,
and it never let me down. There was information on every topic I needed, and
examples with enough substance that I could take it from there. This book spans
the simple to the complicated, so you get a lot of value out of this book -
this book will remain useful as your skills grow.
***+ Javascript The Definitive Guide
Hard core Javascript theory.....at last., August 24, 2000
THE Javascript book for computer programmers!, August 10, 2000With this book I've learned how to visit all objects in the document tree and print out the source code for the event handlers. No "Dummies" or "21 Days" books are going to give you the theoretical grounding to do that! If you have an interest in computer languages in addition to having a need to script your browser, this book is for you. It has a great reference section for looking up language features and the various Window objects as well. If you want to build complex Web applications that use a lot of client side Javascript, this book will open new possibilities to you.
If you still own the Second Edition you owe it to yourself
to buy a replacement; this Third Edition is a far superior book.
Focus on IE Minimal & Not Enough Examples, June 14, 2000
Reviewer:
reb99z (see more about me) from
Navigator may have been THE browser back in 96 when the book was first written,
but this third edition came out in 98 when IE was fast taking over. I think
it's a bit deceptive that the title doesn't indicate the strong Netscape Navigator
bias. The end result is that I have to go out and get another book for JavaScript
under IE. Pity! Also there's a lot of prose and not enough complete examples
that one can try.
Not for beginners, May 23, 2000
Reviewer:
Tobias Schmidt (see more about me) from
I am pretty new to JavaScript and so I decided to buy three book to get me started:
this one, the Visual Quickstart Guide by Peachpit Press and The official Netscape
JavaScript Guide.
I started with the Visual Quickstart Guide to get a basic understanding of JavaScript but soon noticed that I was just copying the scripts in the book and didn't really learn any JavaScript. This is where the Netscape Guide came into play. It took me through everything step by step and I am now able to actually programm my own stuff. I use THIS book mainly to learn the stuff the previous two books didn't cover and also as a reference, one of the really big plusses of the book. Half of the book consists of a reference that lists all the objects, properties, even-handlers and whatnot. Just amazing, has helped me numerous times!
I cannot recommend this book for absolute beginners though.
It just doesn't take you through the process of learning step by step.
Excellent Reference section, but TERRIBLE examples, August 17, 2000
Worked for me..., May 12, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from
This is one of those books which probably deserves the * to **** ratings
various people give it - it just depends on where they're coming from, in terms
of programming background, and what they're trying to accomplish.
For me, this relatively cheap WROX book fit the bill: I had some specific JavaScript problems on a project I was handed at work and I found the solutions here very quickly... faster than I could have with one of those massive tomes of excrutiating detail! But my background is pretty strong in OO and procedural programing, even if I am a JavaScript newbie: I came in with a pretty good idea of what details I was looking for.
Bottom line: I wouldn't recommend this book as a newbie tutorial
or something to get started on programming with. But if you have the background
and just need to find specific stuff or maybe come up to speed quickly in "another"
language, this has an appropriate level of detail and is structured logically
enough for you to zero in without excessive hunting.
My favorite JS book, misleading title, September 13, 2000Here is what it is not:
a) A step by step cookbook for people who buy "Dummies" or "In 21-15-5 days" brand books.
b) A complete reference (if you need that you can get O'reilly book or find a searchable online reference.
Remember, Wrox(this book's publisher) motto is "Programmer to Programmer". And this book is truly in this spirit.
My favorite chapter is #7, called "Disappearing Data". Reading it is like listening to an experienced JavaScripter explaining all the pitfalls of the language. Chapter 6 - "Privacy, Security and Cookies" was very useful to me too. Just these two chapters make this book worth buying.
JavaScript Objects, August 28, 2000Others have complained about the examples being too academic
but I found them very appropriate for the kinds of things I'd do such as using
regular expressions for form validation, binding of html elements to objects,
etc., using tree and stack data structures for document parsing... Even if you
already use these techniques I found it an effective way to teach the language.
A great book with great depth, August 18, 2000
Reviewer:
Easdr ahuk (see more about me) from Mohr's Beach, SK Canada
This is an important book, that takes the object-oriented aspects of JavaScript
seriously and will take you there, if you are prepared to think long and hard.
I found the reading is slow going because there is an incredible amount of material
here. Buy this book and then find lots of time to work the code and think about
OO and how JavaScript does OO. Wow
Disappointing, July 18, 2000
Reviewer:
Robert A. Fontana (see more about me) from Boca Raton, FL United States
The main point that the authors attempt to make is that JavaScript can be a
powerful an