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JavaScript
1

Hey everyone,

I have had a passionate love for computers since a child. I’m currently 17, however my vast knowledge in programming as never been extremely vast the way I expected to. I know HTML & CSS along with HTML5 & CSS3. However, I do not know JAVASCRIPT as I find it hard to catch on. Could anyone provide me with a great JavaScript book, site or anywhere I can go learn JavaScript at least to an intermediate beginner level?

Thanks

2

There are lots of JS books. DOM Scripting by Jeremy Keith is a good one, but there are lots of others.

3

Hi,

I recommend Eloquent JavaScript.
I also recommend reading this thread: http://www.sitepoint.com/forums/showthread.php?660198-JavaScript-Books-Help

4

Thank your for a great response. I will look further into that link and pick out certain ebooks that catch my attention. However from the list provided is there a specific one you think I look into to? Like your favorite book that your look back into for reference.

5

They’re what I used, and while I’m not a master at Javascript, it’s a good way to start learning.

6

I first learnt JavaScript with SitePoint’s Simply JavaScript.
I still use this book for reference from time to time, but to be honest I’m a jQuery fanboy and if I get stuck on something I just Google it (and normally end up on StackOverflow or on the jQuery API documentation).

7

Nothing wrong with jQuery provided that you understand enough JavaScript to be able to use it properly. Too many people try to use it without knowing enough JavaScript and end up with a dozen lines of JQuery calls where a half dozen JavaScript statements would do the same thing.

There are quite a few JavaScript books around with the ones mentioned in this thread so far being amongst the better ones. JavaScript has changed significantly since the demise of Netscape 4 so you definitely need to avoid older JavaScript books written while that browser was still around.

From the sorts of JavaScript homework questions I regularly see, the people teaching most beginners JavaScript classes are badly in need of learning the basics of JavaScript themselves as most of what they seem to teach is as obsolete as Netscape 4. The JavaScript section of w3schools is also completely outdated and misleads a lot of people into learning how to write JavaScript for Netscape 4 rather than modern browsers.

At http://www.felgall.com/jstip117.htm I have a few guidelines that can be used when looking at a JavaScript book or course to help you work out whether it is intended for current browsers or is at most of historical interest.