Since the earliest days of Internet scripting, Web developers have considered JavaScript: The Definitive Guide an essential resource. David Flanagan's approach, which combines tutorials and examples with easy-to-use syntax guides and object references, suits the typical programmer's requirements nicely. The brand-new fourth edition of Flanagan's "Rhino Book" includes coverage of JavaScript 1.5, JScript 5.5, ECMAScript 3, and the Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 standard from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Interestingly, the author has shifted away from specifying--as he did in earlier editions--what browsers support each bit of the language. Rather than say Netscape 3.0 supports the Image object while Internet Explorer 3.0 does not, he specifies that JavaScript 1.1 and JScript 3.0 support Image. More usefully, he specifies the contents of independent standards like ECMAScript, which encourages scripters to write applications for these standards and browser vendors to support them. As Flanagan says, JavaScript and its related subjects are very complex in their pure forms. It's impossible to keep track of the differences among half a dozen vendors' generally similar implementations. Nonetheless, a lot of examples make reference to specific browsers' capabilities.

Though he does not cover server-side APIs, Flanagan has chosen to separate coverage of core JavaScript (all the keywords, general syntax, and utility objects like Array) from coverage of client-side JavaScript (which includes objects, like History and Event, that have to do with Web browsers and users' interactions with them. This approach makes this book useful to people using JavaScript for applications other than Web pages. By the way, the other classic JavaScript text--Danny Goodman's JavaScript Bible--isn't as current as this book, but it's still a fantastic (and perhaps somewhat more novice-friendly) guide to the JavaScript language and its capabilities. --David Wall

Topics covered: The JavaScript language (version 1.0 through version 1.5) and its relatives, JScript and ECMAScript, as well as the W3C DOM standards they're often used to manipulate. Tutorial sections show how to program in JavaScript, while reference sections summarize syntax and options while providing copious code examples.


From Library Journal
O'Reilly books have a reputation among programmers for providing some of the best technical information for professionals. No exception, these three web-related books will only enhance O'Reilly's reputation. JavaScript is not Java, but it is very useful because JavaScript code does not need to be compiled and the scripts can be embedded directly into an HTML document. Flanagan's work is an excellent book for programmers interested in learning it quickly. Grand, meanwhile, provides an exceptionally clear discussion of Java itself that is particularly useful for a working programmer moving from C++ to Java. Threads are what makes Java a particularly useful language for multiprocessing?the ability to appear to do more than one thing at a time?which is what the Internet is all about. The tricky part of threads is that the concept is new for most users. Oaks offers a very clear discussion of how to spawn a process, when to spawn, and how to synchronize and schedule it, all illustrated with good network examples.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book News, Inc.
A programmers guide and reference manual providing a complete description of the language, with programming examples, and a reference section covering each function, object, method, property, and event handler. Eight chapters document the core language, and six chapters describe how it works on the client side to interact with the Web browser and Web page. This second edition covers the versions of JavaScript included in Netscape Navigator 2.0 and 3.0 and in Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0. -- Copyright © 1999 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR All rights reserved


Book Description
JavaScript is a powerful, object-based scripting language; JavaScript programs can be embedded directly in HTML web pages. When combined with the Document Object Model (DOM) defined by a web browser, JavaScript allows you to create Dynamic HTML content and interactive client-side web applications. JavaScript: The Definitive Guide provides a thorough description of the core JavaScript language and both the legacy and standard DOMs implemented in web browsers. The book also contains detailed reference sections that cover the core JavaScript API, the legacy client-side API, and the W3C standard DOM API, documenting every JavaScript object, method, property, constructor, constant, function, and event handler in those APIs. This fourth edition of the bestselling JavaScript book has been carefully updated to cover JavaScript 1.5. The book also provides complete coverage of the W3C DOM standard (Level 1 and Level 2), while retaining material on the legacy Level 0 DOM for backward compatibility.


Book Info
A programmer's guide and reference manual providing a complete description of the language, with programming examples, and a reference section covering each function, object, method, property, and event handler. Softcover.


The publisher, O'Reilly and Associates
JavaScript is a simple programming language from Netscape that can be embedded in your HTML web pages. It allows you to control the behavior of the web browser, add dynamically created text to your web pages, interact with the user through HTML forms (without CGI scripts), and, in version 3.0 of Netscape Navigator, even control and interact with Java applets and Navigator plugins. JavaScript is not an alternative to Java, but an ideal partner. The two languages have separate but very complementary features. Since JavaScript is a simple language that can be embedded directly into a web page, without need for compilation, it is accessible to more web page authors, and may actually have a larger short-term impact on the Web and on Internet computing than Java itself. This book is a definitive guide for JavaScript. The first eight chapters document the core JavaScript language, and the next six describe how JavaScript works on the client side to interact with the web browser and with the web page. These chapters are followed by a complete reference section that documents every object, property, method, event handler, function, and constructor used by client-side JavaScript. This book also covers the use of JavaScript on web servers, as well as the object, properties, and methods of server-side JavaScript. A separate reference section documents the interaction between JavaScript and HTML -- mainly aspects of HTML that relate to JavaScript. The book describes the version of JavaScript shipped with Navigator 2.0, 2.0.1, and 2.0.2, and also the much-changed version of JavaScript shipped with Navigator 3.0, 3.0.1, and 3.0.2. LiveConnect, used for communication between JavaScript and Java applets, and commonly encountered bugs on JavaScript objects are also covered.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Over the past few years, the JavaScript language has matured. Not only is JavaScript now an international standard (called ECMAScript), the standard itself is in its third, refined version. Conformant implementations are available in several leading browsers, from Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 to Mozilla; and open source versions are available to be incorporated into any application that can benefit from a scripting language.

All this is to say that JavaScript is more useful than ever, and the JavaScript you use now can be relied upon (at least as much as anything in the computer industry ) to remain stable for years to come. It's worth your time to become a more capable JavaScript programmer -- and David Flanagan's JavaScript: The Definitive Guide, Fourth Edition may be your best tool for achieving that goal.

Well-known as "The Rhino Book" for its cover, JavaScript: The Definitive Guide has long been an outstanding resource for JavaScript programmers. Flanagan writes with discipline and clarity, and his book combines excellent tutorial coverage with a detailed reference that documents the classes, methods, and properties defined by the core JavaScript language.

But a lot's changed since the 1998 edition. And if you got involved with JavaScript at the heat of the web gold rush, a lot's changed since whatever JavaScript book you rely on was written. Here's just some of what's new and different in this book.

First of all, Flanagan's thoroughly updated his coverage to reflect JavaScript 1.5 and the aforementioned ECMA-262 third edition standard. Previous editions had a heavy focus on Netscape's implementation of JavaScript; that will obviously no longer do, so Flanagan has moved to a focus on the official standard. Since browser conformance has improved significantly, this book will help you write code that'll survive pretty much any browser you throw at it. (The reference section carefully specifies when each language element was introduced, and which versions of the standard support it.)

Flanagan's reorganized the book. For one thing, core language coverage has been separated with coverage of using JavaScript in client-side browsers, recognizing that many JavaScript developers nowadays aren't working in classic web browser environments. More important, he's moved the coverage of the W3C's DOM implementation into a section of its own, and substantially expanded that coverage. (Both DOM Level 2 and Level 1 are covered, with Level 0 coverage kept for backward compatibility.)

JavaScript: The Definitive Guide, Fourth Edition begins with an overview of what JavaScript can and cannot do, including some lingering myths about the language (many still view it as purely a simple scripting language, and are surprised by its depth when they attempt to perform complex tasks with it.) Next, Flanagan reviews the fundamentals of JavaScript 1.5: its lexical structure, data types and values, variables, expressions, operators, and statements.

If you're an experienced Java, C++, or C programmer, much of Section I will be familiar: JavaScript was designed to help developers leverage existing skills. Section II, however, focuses on stuff that's handled significantly differently in JavaScript. Here, Flanagan covers functions, objects, arrays, and pattern matching with regular expressions. He also introduces several advanced features, notably JavaScript's automatic data type conversion, garbage collection, lexical scoping, and function constructors.

Next, Flanagan focuses on client-side JavaScript. He shows how JavaScript integrates with web browsers; introduces the Window object and JavaScript's event-driven programming model; and shows how to use the Document Object to expose an HTML document's contents to JavaScript code. The book includes chapters on forms and form elements; cookies; and scripting CSS/DHTML to manipulate the style, appearance, and position of HTML document elements.

Notwithstanding Microsoft's dominance, it's still a diverse world out there. Flanagan shows how to avoid, minimize, and mitigate browser incompatibilities, introducing techniques for testing features, implementing platform-specific workarounds, and testing compatibility with server-side scripts. There's coverage of security, and a quick look at using Java with JavaScript. And the 300-page reference? Invaluable.

You'll live happily with this book for a long time. (Bill Camarda)

Bill Camarda is a consultant, writer, and web/multimedia content developer with nearly 20 years' experience in helping technology companies deploy and market advanced software, computing, and networking products and services. He served for nearly ten years as vice president of a New Jersey–based marketing company, where he supervised a wide range of graphics and web design projects. His 15 books include Special Edition Using Word 2000 and Upgrading & Fixing Networks For Dummies®, Second Edition.

ANNOTATION

Geared toward JavaScript programmers, this book provides an excellent programmer's guide and reference manual for JavaScript 1.2. It includes a thorough description of the core JavaScript language and a detailed reference section.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

JavaScript: The Definitive Guide provides a thorough description of the core JavaScript language and its client-side framework, complete with sophisticated examples that show you how to handle common tasks like validating form data, working with cookies, and creating cross-browser dynamic content. The book also contains an in-depth reference section that covers every core and client-side JavaScript function, object, method, property, constructor, and event handler. HTML authors can use this book to learn how to build dynamic web pages with JavaScript. Experienced programmers can quickly find the information they need to start writing JavaScript programs. This book is an indispensable reference for all JavaScript programmers, regardless of experience level.

SYNOPSIS