Learning Javascript

[Michael Reach]

Can anyone suggest a really good course in Javascript that my son can
take online, starting right away? It should be for someone without
much programming experience, and I mean a real course, that covers
things properly and gives problems to work, so that someone who puts
in the time can really learn it. Or, the same for a book to buy.
Thanks

 

[timothytoe]

Can anyone suggest a really good course in Javascript that my son can
take online, starting right away? It should be for someone without
much programming experience, and I mean a real course, that covers
things properly and gives problems to work, so that someone who puts
in the time can really learn it. Or, the same for a book to buy.
Thanks

In my estimation, there are no especially good books that teach
programming with JavaScript as the language (a gaping hole someone
should fill, given the importance of JavaScript). The best books for
learning how to program are for other languages, Python, Ruby, Java,
C, and C++, and maybe ActionScript. You can probably do as well with a
Google search for tutorials as you can from the available beginners
books, most of which teach JavaScript as if it were a limited version
of C.

The best JavaScript books are reference books. I do like Crockford's
new book quite a bit (JavaScript: The Good Parts), but I don't know
what a beginner would make of it.

Most people seem to be learning JavaScript by looking at source code
from existing web pages. The danger is that there's a lot of atrocious
JavaScript code out there.

He could learn another language first. It's pretty easy to pick up
languages after you have the first one down. It's pretty easy to learn
how to program ActionScript in Flash. That's a valuable skill, and
it's very easy to go back and forth between ActionScript and
JavaScript, as they are closely related languages.

I have never, ever met someone who has learned JavaScript from a
course. I don't know of any good JavaScript teachers.

 

[Michael Reach]

Thanks for your advice; this was kind of my impression too. It's too
bad, though, because JS would be very easy for a beginner to begin to
use: Learn HTML, learn Javascript, and you can make your web page do
things.

 

[Evertjan.]

Michael Reach wrote on 05 jun 2008 in comp.lang.javascript:

Thanks for your advice; this was kind of my impression too. It's too
bad, though, because JS would be very easy for a beginner to begin to
use: Learn HTML, learn Javascript, and you can make your web page do
things.

[please always quote on usenet]

Javascript on a webpage, however, is not just Javascript, but also html
elements, multiple incompatible brouwser interpreters, css styles,
timing, regular expressions, browser interactivity [AJAX], etc.

That is more than just a language, and gives chalenge and fun.

Trial and error, debugging, and help from this NG
can complement the necessary inborn logical mind.

 

[Captain Paralytic]

Can anyone suggest a really good course in Javascript that my son can
take online, starting right away? It should be for someone without
much programming experience, and I mean a real course, that covers
things properly and gives problems to work, so that someone who puts
in the time can really learn it. Or, the same for a book to buy.
Thanks

These are fairly good:

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/111593/1710507

 

[Michael Reach]

These are fairly good:

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/111593/1710507

Crockford's videos are *wonderful*; I learned a lot from them. But my
son needs something that also takes on the job of teaching programming
concepts at the same time.

 

[Jeremy J Starcher]

Can anyone suggest a really good course in Javascript that my son can
take online, starting right away? It should be for someone without much
programming experience, and I mean a real course, that covers things
properly and gives problems to work, so that someone who puts in the
time can really learn it. Or, the same for a book to buy. Thanks

As stated before, most folks learn from examples on the net.

Sturgeon's law tells us that "90% of everything is crap." Alas, when it
comes to Javascript tutorials and examples I tend to think he was an
optimist.

I put together a page to try to help other folks learning to avoid the
pitfalls I did but helping them avoid the worst of the stuff out there
and then the folks here on c.l.j spent hours and hundreds of posts
helping me get it right.

<URL: http://www.mopedepot.com/jjs/HowToRecognizeBadJavascriptCode.html >

Hope it helps.

 

[Galaxy]

As stated before, most folks learn from examples on the net.

That's and by experimenting.

Sturgeon's law tells us that "90% of everything is crap." Alas, when it
comes to Javascript tutorials and examples I tend to think he was an
optimist.

That would seem to imply that an apt pupil might unknowingly teach
himself anothers' shoddy coding approach without knowing better.

I think that the libraries have done harm, in this regard, encouraging
users to take advantage of a layer of abstraction that needlessly
overcomplicates and slows down both the program and the user's
understanding of how to solve the problem at hand.

Experimenting and building things is probably more fun than trying to
go about learning EcmaScript syntax first. Good syntax can be learned
by examples of well-written code. Bad syntax can be identified by
observing code reviews that provide explanation of the problems.
Explanations of the code practices can be learned in the process, by
example e.g. here's how to build an [x] and here's why we did it this
way. Good references are invaluable these include:
w3c:
DOM: http://www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-DOM-Level-2-HTML-20030109/
Events: http://www.w3.org/TR/DOM-Level-2-Events/
CSS: http://www.w3.org/Style/CSS/
HTML: http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/
MSDN: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms533050(VS.85).aspx
http://developer.mozilla.com.

Amd of course, the HTML and CSS Validators
http://validator.w3.org
http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/

And Finally, the Ecma 262 spec. I don't like PDF, so I use Bob Clary's
HTML edition:
http://bclary.com/2004/11/07/

Tools:
Firebug: http://getfirebug.com/
MS Script Editor: (comes with Word; I cant find free one now --
anyone?)
MS Visual Studio Express (slow)
Web Developer Toolbar (Firefox Extension)
Webkit/Drosera

I also think that the mental approach and attitude: "What is the best
way to do this?" - and having the discipline to follow through with
that is very important.

My .02 on learning JavaScript.

Garrett

 

[Logos]

Can anyone suggest a really good course in Javascript that my son can
take online, starting right away? It should be for someone without
much programming experience, and I mean a real course, that covers
things properly and gives problems to work, so that someone who puts
in the time can really learn it. Or, the same for a book to buy.
Thanks

I hate to say it, but the other posters are likely correct. I've
never seen a DHTML course, anywhere. You might check out your local
college on web design courses, but I'd be surprised if they covered it
much, much less treat it as a real computing science course would.

I tried to find such courses as well, for a workmate, but failed :
( And I learned the same way everyone else did - just started coding,
and googled for examples on the web, and bought a reference book (I
really like O'Reilly's DHTML reference).

Tyler

 

[todd.levinson]

This might get some groans from this group, but I learned a lot from
DOM Scripting by Jeremy Keith. It covers very basic concepts,
encourages feature testing and onubtrusive javascript, and has some
pretty useful examples for beginners. If he's hungry for more after
that, I suggest the Javascript reference from O'Reilly. With that he
can get a better understanding of core javascript, and also get a lot
of useful info and re-usable utility code from the section that covers
client-side scripting.

 

[Dr J R Stockton]

In comp.lang.javascript message <[email protected]