Get Programming with JavaScript

Description

It is a book for beginners, for those with no programming experience. It makes extensive use of online code listings on the JS Bin website, a sandbox where you can experiment with the code and see the results instantly. In addition to shorter examples to illustrate the concepts covered, there is an ongoing example—a text-based adventure game called The Crypt—that you build as you progress through the book. This book contains many examples of source code both in numbered listings and in line with normal text.

About the Author

John Larsen is a mathematics and computing teacher with an interest in educational research. He has an MA in mathematics and an MSc in information technology. He started programming in 1982, writing simple programs for teaching mathematics in 1993, building websites in 2001, and developing data-driven web-based applications for education in 2006.

Table of Contents

Book Review

Part 1: Core Concepts On The Console

Programming, JavaScript, and JS Bin
Variables: storing data in your program
Objects: grouping your data
Functions: code on demand
Arguments: passing data to functions
Return values: getting data from functions
Object arguments: functions working with objects
Arrays: putting data into lists
Constructors: building objects with functions
Bracket notation: flexible property names

Part 2: Organizing Your Programs

Scope: hiding information
Conditions: choosing code to run
Modules: breaking a program into pieces
Models: working with data
Views: displaying data
Controllers: linking models and views

Part 3: JavaScript In The Browser

HTML: building web pages
Controls: getting user input
Templates: filling placeholders with data
XHR: loading data
Conclusion: get programming with JavaScript
Node: running JavaScript outside the browser
Express: building an API
Polling: repeating requests with XHR
Socket.IO: real-time messaging