The perennial bestseller returns with new details for using the latest tools and techniques available with JavaScript JavaScript is the definitive language for making the Web a dynamic, rich, interactive medium. This guide to JavaScript builds on the success of previous editions and introduces you to many new advances in JavaScript development. The reorganization of the chapters helps streamline your learning process while new examples provide you with updated JavaScript programming techniques. You'll get all-new coverage of Ajax for remote scripting, JavaScript frameworks, JavaScript and XML, and the latest features in modern Web browsers. Plus, all the featured code has been updated to ensure compliance with the most recent popular Web browsers. Introduces you to the latest capabilities of JavaScript, the definitive language for developing dynamic, rich, interactive Web sites Features new coverage of data types and variables, JavaScript and XML, Ajax for remote scripting, and popular JavaScript frameworks Offers updated code that ensures compliance with the most popular Web browsers Includes improved examples on the most up-to-date JavaScript programming techniques Continuing in the superlative tradition of the first three editions, Beginning JavaScript, Fourth Edition, gets you up to speed on all the new advances in JavaScript development.

Jeremy McPeak is a self-taught programmer who began his career by tinkering with web sites in 1998. He is the coauthor of Professional Ajax, 2nd Edition and several online articles covering topics such as XSLT, ASP.NET Web Forms, and C#. He is currently employed at an energy-based company building in-house conventional and web applications.

JavaScript allows you to enhance your web pages and web applications by providing dynamic, personalized, and interactive content. Serving as a great introduction to JavaScript, this book offers all you need to start using JavaScript on your web pages right away. It's fully updated and covers utilizing JavaScript with the latest versions of the Internet Explorer®, Firefox®, and Safari® browsers.

• Walks you through the basics of JavaScript: what it is, how it works, and what you can do with it

• Covers the various tools needed to create JavaScript web applications

• Escorts you through selecting a single character from a string, converting character codes to a string, and copying string parts

• Shows you how to join arrays, copy parts of an array, sort arrays, and reverse an array's order

• Explains how using a JavaScript framework (such as jQuery, Prototype, and MooTools) makes JavaScript programming faster and more efficient

• Offers an in-depth look at Ajax

• Reviews common mistakes, debugging, and error handling

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Wrox Beginning guides are crafted to make learning programming languages and technologies easier than you think, providing a structured, tutorial format that will guide you through all the techniques involved.

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Introduction xxv

Chapter 1: Introduction to JavaScript and the Web 1

Introduction to JavaScript 1

Where Do My Scripts Go? 7

Your First Simple JavaScript Programs 8

A Brief Look at Browsers and Compatibility Problems 15

Summary 16

Chapter 2: Data Types and Variables 17

Types of Data in JavaScript 17

Variables Storing Data in Memory 20

Using Data Calculations and Basic String Manipulation 26

Data Type Conversion 37

Arrays 40

Summary 49

Exercise Questions 50

Chapter 3: Decisions, Loops, and Functions 51

Decision Making The if and switch Statements 51

Looping The for and while Statements 71

Functions 79

Summary 84

Exercise Questions 86

Chapter 4: Common Mistakes, Debugging, and Error Handling 87

D'oh! I Can't Believe I Just Did That: Some Common Mistakes 87

Error Handling 93

Debugging 103

Summary 131

Exercise Questions 131

Chapter 5: JavaScript An Object-Based Language 133

Object-Based Programming 133

JavaScript's Native Object Types 139

Creating New Types of Objects (Reference Types) 177

Summary 187

Exercise Questions 188

Chapter 6: Programming the Browser 189

Introduction to the Browser's Objects 190

Responding to the User's Actions with Events 199

Summary 215

Exercise Questions 217

Chapter 7: HTML Forms: Interacting with the User 219

HTML Forms 219

Other Form Object Properties and Methods 222

Summary 260

Exercise Questions 262

Chapter 8: Windows and Frames 263

Frames and the window Object 264

Opening New Windows 284

Security 298

Summary 298

Exercise Questions 299

Chapter 9: String Manipulation 301

Additional String Methods 302

Regular Expressions 306

The String Object split(), replace(), search(), and match() Methods 327

Using the RegExp Object's Constructor 335

Summary 345

Exercise Questions 345

Chapter 10: Date, Time, and Timers 347

World Time 348

Timers in a Web Page 358

Summary 364

Exercise Questions 365

Chapter 11: Storing Information: Cookies 367

Baking Your First Cookie 367

Creating a Cookie 377

Getting a Cookie's Value 381

Cookie Limitations 386

Cookie Security and IE6+ 388

Summary 389

Exercise Questions 389

Chapter 12: Dynamic HTML and the W3C Document Object Model 391

The Web Standards 392

The Document Object Model 397

Manipulating the DOM 422

Writing Cross-Browser DHTML 447

JavaScript and XML 453

Summary 467

Exercise Questions 468

Chapter 13: Using ActiveX and Plug-Ins with JavaScript 469

Checking for and Embedding Plug-ins (Non-IE Browsers) 470

Checking for and Embedding ActiveX Controls on Internet Explorer 474

Using Plug-ins and ActiveX Controls 480

Summary 488

Exercise Question 489

Chapter 14: Ajax 491

What Is Ajax? 491

Using the XMLHttpRequest Object 494

Creating a Simple Ajax Module 500

Validating Form Fields with Ajax 505

Things to Watch Out For 515

Summary 525

Exercise Questions 525

Chapter 15: JavaScript Frameworks 527

Picking a Framework to Work With 527

Getting Started 528

Digging Deeper Into jQuery 537

Diving into Prototype 558

Delving into MooTools 575

Summary 590

Exercise Questions 590

Appendix A: Answers to Exercises 591

Appendix B: JavaScript Core Reference 665

Appendix C: W3C DOM Reference 697

Appendix D: Latin-1 Character Set 725

In…