JAVASCRIPT Pam Kahl | COM 585 | Spring 2010
What It Is JavaScript is: Considered the scripting language for the web Client-side scripting language for web pages Is to the browser what ASP and PHP are to servers Relatively easy to use Underlying functionality for HTML-based programs Adobe Reader Adobe Dreamweaver CS3 Dialect of ECMAScript JavaScript, Jscript, ActionScript Not Java
History Developed by Brendan Eich @ Netscape Mocha! no wait . . . LiveScript! no really . . . JavaScript! Launched Dec 1995, NS v2.0 Marketing partnership with Sun Renaissance thanks to Ajax
What It Does Basic functionality Text, pop up boxes, contextual content Enhances dynamics and interactive features Calculations Interactive games Security passwords Cookies
Examples <html> <body> <script type="text/javascript"> document.write("Hello World!"); </script> </body> </html> Hello World! = http://www.w3schools.com/js/tryit.asp?filename=tryjs_alert http://www.w3schools.com/js/tryit.asp?filename=tryjs_imagemap http://www.w3schools.com/js/tryit.asp?filename=try_dom_window_resizeto
Why Important For non-programmers Enables engaging site functionality Cookies allow for customized experiences Easy to update