JavaScript Design
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After mastering the design of basic web pages, the first scripting language you need to add to your portfolio is JavaScript. Even with eye-catching graphics and interesting text, today's web pages need the dynamic content offered by JavaScript to attract and keep viewers' interest. Things such as rollovers, pop-up boxes, and interactive web pages require more than HTML. JavaScript Design is written with the designer in mind to help you master JavaScript and add a whole new dimension to your designs. In addition, to help you get started using databases with JavaScript, this book provides instructions to middleware such as CGI, ASP, PHP pages and SQL databases. 777 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Copyright
About the Author
About the Technical Reviewers
Acknowledgments
Tell Us What You Think
Part I: Basic JavaScript
Chapter 1. Jump-Starting JavaScript
JavaScript Lives in a Web Page
Putting JavaScript into Your HTML Pages
What You Can Do with JavaScript That You Can't Do with HTML
An Interpreted Language
A Tale of Two Interpreters
Generated JavaScript
Summary
Chapter 2. An Orientation to JavaScript
Writing JavaScript
Naming Rules and Conventions
A Weakly Typed Language Means That JavaScript Is Smart
Summary
Chapter 3. Dealing with Data and Variables
Literals
Variables
Primitive and Compound Data
Arrays
Summary
Chapter 4. Using Operators and Expressions
General and Bitwise Operators
General Operators in JavaScript
Operators
Precedence
Summary
Chapter 5. JavaScript Structures
Statements in Sequential Structures
Conditional Structures
Loops
The
The
Summary
Chapter 6. Building and Calling Functions
Methods and Functions
Creating Functions
Firing Functions with Event Handlers
The
Using Functions as Data
Properties in Functions
Methods in Functions
Summary
Chapter 7. Objects and Object Hierarchies
Hierarchy of Objects in JavaScript
User-Defined Objects
Built-in Objects and Their Properties
Key Built-in Object Methods
Summary
Part 2: Using JavaScript with Web Pages
Chapter 8. JavaScript Object-Oriented Programming and the Document Object Model
Object-Oriented Programming in JavaScript
The Prototype Concept
The Document Object Model
Summary
Chapter 9. Frames and Addressing Frames in Windows
The Window as a Complex Object
Scripts That Write Scripts
Summary
Chapter 10. Event Handlers
The
Events and Event Handlers in HTML and JavaScript
Summary
Chapter 11. Making Forms Perform
The Many Types of Forms Elements in HTML
All Text Entries Are Strings
Passing Data Between Forms and Variables
Forms as Arrays
Types of Forms
Buttons and Their Events
Summary
Chapter 12. Dynamic HTML
What Is Dynamic HTML?
Cascading Style Sheets
Borders
External CSS Style Sheets
The Role of JavaScript in Dynamic HTML
Summary
Chapter 13. Remember with Cookies
What Are Cookies and How Are They Used?
Adding More Attributes
Getting Information and Giving It Back
Summary
Part I: JavaScript and Other Applications and Languages
Chapter 14. Using PHP with JavaScript
The PHP4 Scripting Language
Passing Data from JavaScript to PHP
Controlling Multiple PHP Pages with JavaScript
JavaScript Form Preprocessing for PHP
JavaScript, PHP, and MySQL
Summary
Chapter 15. Using ASP with JavaScript
Creating ASP Pages
Variables in VBScript
Operators and Conditional Statements
Loop Structures
Arrays
Passing Data from JavaScript to ASP
Controlling Multiple ASP Pages with JavaScript
Microsoft Access, ASP, and JavaScript
Setting Up the Access 2000 File
Placing the Access 2000 File on the Server and Preparing the DSN
Making the Connection Between Your ASP Page and Database File
Reading an Access 2000 Database with ASP
Reading and Displaying Multiple Fields
Inserting Records into Access from HTML
Summary
Chapter 16. CGI and Perl
Scripting with Perl
A Brief Perl Tutorial
Perl Operators
Perl Statements
File Handling in Perl
Passing Data to CGI from HTML
Summary
Chapter 17. Working with XML and JavaScript
The XML Mystique
What Is XML?
Reading and Showing XML Data with JavaScript
Summary
Chapter 18. Flash ActionScript and JavaScript
ActionScript and JavaScript
Firing a JavaScript Function from Flash
Passing Variables from Flash 5 to JavaScript
Summary
Chapter 19. JavaScript and Other Languages
JavaScript and Java Applets
A Little Java
JavaScript and ColdFusion
JavaScript and ASP.NET
Summary
Example Glossary
Copyright
FIRST EDITION: December, 2001
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2001096750
06 05 04 03 02 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Interpretation of the printing code: The rightmost double-digit number is the year of the book's printing; the rightmost single-digit number is the number of the book's printing. For example, the printing code 02-1 shows that the first printing of the book occurred in 2002.
Printed in the United States of America
Trademarks
All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. New Riders Publishing cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.
Warning and Disclaimer
This book is designed to provide information about JavaScript. Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and as accurate as possible, but no warranty or fitness is implied.
The information is provided on an as-is basis. The author and New Riders Publishing shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information contained in this book or from the use of the web site or programs that may accompany it.
PUBLISHER
David Dwyer
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER
Stephanie Wall
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Gina Kanouse
MANAGING EDITOR
Kristy Knoop
DEVELOPMENT EDITOR
John Rahm
PROJECT EDITOR
Jake McFarland
PRODUCT MARKETING MANAGER
Kathy Malmloff
PUBLICITY MANAGER
Susan Nixon
COPY EDITOR
Krista Hansing
SENIOR INDEXER
Cheryl Lenser
MANUFACTURING COORDINATOR
Jim Conway
BOOK DESIGNER
Barb Kordesh
COVER DESIGNER
Aren Howell
PROOFREADER
Jessica McCarty
COMPOSITION
Barb Kordesh
MEDIA DEVELOPER
Jay Payne
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my wife, Delia.
About the Author
Dr. William B. Sanders is a professor in the Interactive Information Technology program at the University of Hartford. The program is designed to develop students who will work in collaborative environments using the Internet and the World Wide Web and develop digital communicative technologies. Bill has written more than 35 computer-related books, with the goal of translating technology to a wide interest base. To mangle a phrase from Will Rogers, he never met a computer or computer language that he didn't like.
Like the revolution spawned by personal computers, the Internet and the World Wide Web have spawned another. The new languages and applications required to master and effectively use Internet technologies have been a focal interest of Bill's since the web's inception. He has been focused on languages such as JavaScript, PHP, ASP, XML, ActionScript, MySQL, and a host of other web-based programs and applications. However, instead of looking at the new technologies solely as a cool way to make things happen on the web, Bill has been involved with different aspects of e-business and e-commerce, bridging the digital divide in communities and generally looking at ways in which the Internet and the web serve as a lively linkage between people and their aspirations.
As a source of information and understanding, the web is unparalleled, but it is also an arena to explore new art forms and ways of human expression. Bill has sought out design concepts from Edward Tufte's work on information, Hillman Curtis's work on motion design, and David Siegel's work on third-generation web sites. For Bill, each new development in creativity, technology, and communication is an opportunity to see the world in a new light and expand horizons.
His hobbies include travel, Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs, and life with his wife, Delia.
About the Technical Reviewers
These reviewers contributed their considerable hands-on expertise to the entire development process for JavaScript Design. As the book was being written, these dedicated professionals reviewed all the material for technical content, organization, and flow. Their feedback was critical to ensuring that JavaScript Design fits our readers' need for the highest-quality technical information.
Josh Kneedler resides in Portland, Oregon. He is a founding partner of the visual media studio Dreaming America (http://dreamingamerica.com). With the support of Dreaming America, Josh has also started an online magazine called Rangermag (http://rangermag.com). Over the years since 1997, Josh has acquired a strong sense of both functionality and design. He can be reached at josh@dreamingamerica.com.
Joel Lee and Bryan Ginz are technical editors for JTL Networks, Inc. (JTLNET). Based in Columbus, Ohio, JTLNET provides a variety of information technology and consulting services for businesses, including managed web hosting, custom programming and design, remote administration, remote data storage, and network design. For more information on JTLNET, visit www.jtlnet.com.
Acknowledgments
This book began back in 1996 using JavaScript 1.1 and later JavaScript 1.2, when it became available. A group of us at the University of Hartford got together once a week to create problems to be solved with JavaScript and, much to my surprise and delight, many of the tools, applications, and utilities that we developed then, we still use today. Of those involved, the brightest of this group was and remains to be David Kelly. Dave developed a Quiz-Maker in JavaScript that still makes great online quizzes. He also seemed to be about five jumps ahead of the rest of us and was a great help to us all. Laura Spitz, a designer extraordinaire, still does extraordinary designs and uses JavaScript regularly in her work. She introduced me to BBEdit and HomeSite, which have yet to replace NotePad and SimpleText on my PC and Mac, respectively. Finally, Morris Hicks, who recently took over the Assistant Director of the Office of Information Technology position at Boise State University, was a regular with our group and provided a knowledgeable presence at our meetings.
Also at the University of Hartford, I'd like to thank the faculty and students in the Interactive Information Technology program. The students are an always creative lot who challenge the faculty to come up with better courses, answers, and scripts. Likewise, the IIT faculty, including John Gray, Jerry Katrichis, and David Demers, are a good group to kick ideas around with. Also, Steve Misovich and Lou Boudreau of the University of Hartford Hillyer College psychology faculty were a true inspiration as we developed a virtual psychology lab for the web. Everything from a rat maze to a timed reaction experiment were accomplished using JavaScript as part of a grant application to the National Science Foundation. During this project, I learned that there is very little that cannot be accomplished with JavaScript once a project goal has been set.
Next, I'd like to thank the people at New Riders. Thanks to Stephanie Wall, who worked with me to develop an outline for the book that would focus on designers' needs in working with and understanding JavaScript. Also, I would like to thank John Rahm for helping to develop everything just right and Jake McFarland for coordinating the details of the finishing touches. Thanks also to the copy and technical editors Krista Hansing, Josh Kneedler, Joel Lee, and Bryan Ginz for locating the glitches and setting them straight.
Finally, I'd like to thank my wife, Delia. As I was starting this book, she was beginning her doctoral work at Smith College, and so both of us were in our studies, thinking and writing together. Like everything else we do together, it brought us closer.
Tell Us What You Think
As the reader of this book, you are the most important critic and commentator. We value your opinion and want to know what we're doing right, what we could do better, what areas you'd like to see us publish in, and any other words of wisdom you're willing to pass our way.
As the Associate Publisher for New Riders Publishing, I welcome your comments. You can fax, email, or write me directly to let me know what you did or didn't like about this book as well as what we can do to make our books stronger.
Please note that I cannot help you with technical problems related to the topic of this book, and that due to the high volume of mail I receive, I might not be able to reply to every message.
When you write, please be sure to include this book's title and author as well as your name and phone or fax number. I will carefully review your comments and share them with the author and editors who worked on the book.
| Fax: | 317-581-4663 |
| Email: | stephanie.wall@newriders.com |
| Mail: | Stephanie Wall |
EAN: 2147483647
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