As web browsers have become more capable and standards compliant, JavaScript has grown in prominence. JavaScript lets designers add sparkle and life to web pages, while more complex JavaScript has led to the rise of Ajax -- the latest rage in web development that allows developers to create powerful and more responsive applications in the browser window.
`Learning JavaScript` introduces this powerful scripting language to web designers and developers in easy-to-understand terms. Using the latest examples from modern browser development practices, this book teaches you how to integrate the language with the browser environment, and how to practice proper coding techniques for standards-compliant web sites. By the end of the book, you'll be able to use all of the JavaScript language and many of the object models provided by web browsers, and you'll even be able to create a basic Ajax application.
User review
not a good choice
I do not have a habit of reviewing books that I read, but after reading well over 1/2 of this book, I just had to voice my opinion.
In short, this book is best to be avoided,,.
,,. and here is why. But first the good: I like the overall length of the book -- about 350 pages, as I would expect any `beginners` or `learning` book to be,, Also, the choice of topics to present is adequate -- general language constructs, DOM, and transition into more advances topics. What I disliked about this book is the presentation of these concepts. The author has a consistent habit of using various concepts in examples that precede the explanation of these concepts: look at innerHTML used in example on page 204 being followed by a subchapter titled `innerHTML` on page 217. I don't care to provide more `proof` but it is plentiful to anyone who has attention to details. This leaves me flipping pages back and forth, essentially defeating the purpose of choosing a short book.
Very bad quality. (oh, and tons of errors too.)
User review
Rather poor; definitely not as good as other O'Reilly titles
Most O'Reilly books I've read are fun and very informative, but this one is dry and full of typos, uses poor examples and is poorly ordered. I do not recommend this one.
User review
Ughhh!!!!
One does not read this book; one is tortured by it.
There are two major complaints I have with this book. The first is the number of errors in the text. (If you read another review of this book and it does not cite the problem with errors very early in the review, then you must be reading a review from Ms. Powers's fiance, sister-in-law, best friend, or cousin.) I have never seen anything close to this level of ineptitude in any other book I have ever read, programming-related or not. Just to tip-toe through this cow pasture:
- By my quick count, there are eighty-three errors listed on the book's errata web page. (It took me about two hours simply to go through the book and write in all of the corrections from the errata page.)
- Ms. Powers occasionally manages more than one error per page.
- Not only do the errors occur often, the arise early. There are errors in each of the book's first three Examples, with Example 1-3 alone mangaging to contain two errors.
- Beginning with Chapter 2, Ms. Powers concludes each chapter with a number of exercise questions - the answers to which are provided at the end of the book. Of the five Chapter 2 answers (i.e., the first five questions and answers in the book) there are errors in three.
- Page 11 is missing, well, two pages! The errata file contains ten paragraphs of text that is missing!
- Any number of errors are `simple` typos: the text uses a hyphen when there should be an underscore, variable names are misspelled, errant characters are enclosed, words are duplicated - that kind of thing. While this is sloppy and wholly unprofessional, one could argue that in The Grand Scheme of Things such errors are minor. However, a number of errors are more egregious. For example [all CAPS are mine],,,,
-On page 94 the book talks about how `the shift RETURNS the first element.` Oops! The text should talk about how `the shift REMOVES the first element.`
-On page 101 a sentence which begins `If a condition IS met,,.`. Darn. It should read `If a condition ISN'T met,,.` (Details, details,,.)
-On page 127 a phrase `cascade means that the LOWEST,,.` should be (Anyone? Anyone? Class?,,.) `cascade means the HIGHEST,,.`
All in all, this is just shameful stuff. If you have a quasi-morbid sense of curiosity you might want to check out the Acknowledgments section which concludes Ms. Powers's Preface. There she thanks her editor, three `tech and content reviewers`, a production editor, and a copy editor. I say `quasi-morbid sense of curiosity` because, presumably, all six individuals have since been, as the British like to say, `sacked.`
All that said, let us gingerly put aside, for a moment, the stupefying number of errors in this book. How does it fare otherwise? (Or, to cite a quip I just love, `Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?`)
Well, I come now to my second major complaint. Errors and typos aside, the book is just terribly written. The organization is dreadful and her grammar is rotten. In fact, the only thing I see Ms. Powers having done well is to compiled the epitome of how NOT to write a book on programming. The two essentials of a good book on programming are that the author:
1) Organizes the material in a logical, coherent manner. A GOOD author introduces essential concepts at the very beginning, and then steadily builds upon and expands upon what the reader has just learned.
2) Takes absolutely every pain to minimize 'jumping ahead' on topics.
Ms. Powers, however, repeatedly drags the reader into complex asides before bailing out by saying `but we will cover that topic later.` She does this from the get-go, and it is maddening. Here are some examples from Chapter 1 ALONE,,.
- In a section about cross-browser incompatibility (p.4), Ms. Powers states most of these incompatibilities `are based on differences in the underlying Document Object Model (DOM) exposed by the browser,,.`. She then goes on for a couple of sentences about why this is so. I, for one, knew next to nothing about the Document Object Model, and I bought the book, in part, because I saw that it contained a discussion of the DOM. Ms. Powers's in-depth discussion of the Document Object Model, however, occurs in Chapters 9 and 10! She should either have made these chapters, perhaps, numbers 1 and 2, or she should should avoid mentioning the DOM until the subject is covered.
- In the section, beginning on p. 7, in which she introduces use of the tag, Ms. Powers notes that this tag needs to include an attribute defining what type of script is being used. While Ms. Powers's book is, of course, about JavaScript, she duly notes that if you want to use any one of four other scripting languages the tag attribute would be, say, `text/ecmascript` or `text/vbscript`. I suppose this is all well and good, though it strikes me as something that could easily have been left to the end of the book. However, Ms. Powers then comes out of left field with this (p.9): `All these type values [i.e., the type of script being used] describe the MIME type of the content. MIME, or Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension, is a way to identify how the content is encoded (i.e., text), and what specific format it is (javascript). The concept arose with email, ,,.` Whoa! Where did the discussion of MIME come from?! Ms. Powers has not discussed MIME previously, and frankly, does not return to it for over 200 pages! In fact, as I reread this section, I found I understood the material much better simply by skipping over her discussion of MIME. To this day I don't understand MIME, nor do I want to. I imagine most novice programmers also understand little about MIME. Why bring MIME up then? IMHO, it serves only to slow down and irritate the reader.
- Later on the same page Ms. Powers goes through a discussion of how there used to be a language attribute for the tag, and shows how this attribute was used to finesse the problem of writing script code that would work regardless of the browser being utilized to view one's web site. She then writes, `Eventually, though, the preference shifted to an approach called 'object detection' - a move only encouraged when the language attribute was depracated. We'll look at object detection more closely in later chapters, particularly those associated with Ajax. For now, object detection involves testing to see if a particular object or property of an object exists,,.` Argh!!! Once again Ms. Powers befuddles the reader. She throws out this new and confusing concept called `object detection`, but then tells you she won't explain it until later in the book! It would have been much easier had she simply said something like `The language tag has been deprecated, so the approach just shown no longer works. The current method for dealing with cross-browser incompatibility will be discussed in full later in the book, in the section on Ajax.` Much simpler, eh??
- As I mentioned, organization aside, the English language is an abused victim in Ms. Powers's clumsy hands. I will give just one example, from page 6. Under a subheading that Javascript can `Hide and show elements [of a web page]`, Ms. Powers writes: `Based on personal preferences or user actions, show or hide page content, such as form elements, expanding writing, and changing the displayed size of an image.` Huh?? Does no one at Wiley understand the concept of parallel construction? How about the concept of restrictive vs. parenthetical clauses, which in turn governs whether these clause should be - or should NOT be - offset with a comma? Heck, would ANY editor at Wiley care to take a crack at diagramming Ms. Powers's little cow pie of a sentence?
Overall, I have a vision of Ms. Powers having sat down to write her tome, and of being overwhelmed with unconnected bits of knowledge about JavaScript, and of simply rushing off to transcribe those thoughts in almost random order. Were she writing a book about driving a car, she would undoubtedly begin with a chapter about buckling up and turning the ignition key, but by the end of Chapter One she would veer off into discussions about how electrical signals travel down wires, how a rotor cap turns inside a distributor cap, and about the ratio of starter engine amps relates to engine liter size,,,, and would, realizing she'd gotten rather off-track, veer back each time by saying `But we'll discuss that later.`
I have to admit that I never did finish the book. I TRIED! In fact, I re-started this book at least twice. I wanted to be sure that it wasn't my pea-sized brain that was the reason Ms. Powers's book is so incomprehensible. I highlighted and reviewed text. Again, I read some sections THREE times. But, my re-readings increased not my knowledge of JavaScript, but my knowledge of what a disaster the book is. On my last foray into `Learning JavaScript`, I finally gave up without having even made it back to page 90.
Ummmm,,,, I would recommend one NOT buy this book. (At least not for reading,,,,)
User review
This book is a train wreck
Beginning with the first example, the book is filled with errors (function `hello()' is called without being defined in example 1-1). Some (not all) are enumerated on the book's errata page. Since the first half of the book discusses syntax, a CS background can allow a reader to read around the errors. The second half discusses BOM, DOM, and Ajax making it's impossible to spot the errors without being a JavaScript expert, which makes the book worthless.
The last third of the book is written as a first person narrative. The book should be about JavaScript, not the author.
Bad writing takes place everyday. How a book like this made it past the editors at a reputable publisher like O'Reilly makes one wonder about their process.
Avoid this book.
User review
Learning JavaScript NOT!
Really hard reading, goes all over subject matter in first chapters, assumes reader has already read much better book on subject. If you are new to JavaScript skip this book. It will make you hate Learning JavaScript which I suggest the title be changed to, `Learning to Hate JavaScript`. I will watch out for author and never buy a book by her again.
