Seasoned Java coders will find the JavaScript Application Cookbook compiled just for them. Written in the same vein as the old-style programmer “toolbox” titles, this book sheds the usual tutorial presentation and simply introduces a series of JavaScript applications you can use on your own sites.

The cookbook begins with recipes such as a client-side search engine application that facilitates complex database searching to maximize local processing. (An interactive multiple-choice testing application follows, along with code for an interface to multiple search engines on the Net). Other applications include a JavaScript shopping cart, context-sensitive help, cipher implementation, drag-and-drop-capable e-mail, and a cookie-based user-management system.

Author Jerry Bradenbaugh clearly has a passion for JavaScript, and he illustrates the capabilities of this modest scripting language. The code for the book’s applications is available from the publisher’s Web site, and each chapter begins with a step-by-step walk-through of the finished application. You’ll learn how code works and get ideas for possible extensions you might want to create. If you’re programming in JavaScript already and want to grow your arsenal of tools and techniques, the JavaScript Application Cookbook is an immediate code fix. –Stephen W. Plain

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.

The only comprehensive book available that covers the latest technology, such as Internet Explorer 6 and JavaScript 1.5, and JScript 5.6. Packed full of hands-on examples, this book integrates JavaScript with .NET, XML, XSLT, Java, CSS, HTML, Cookies, Security, and much more. Written for beginning to intermediate readers looking to learn how to work with JavaScript and how best to use it with other web technologies. Inside JavaSriptfills a void between the very beginning and high level books available in bookstores today. It’s a book readers want primarily for two reasons: re-usable code and up-to-date browser information. Books currently out on the shelf are not up to the latest in browser technology; thus, frustrating readers because everything done in JavaScript is dependent on browser capabilities. The web site will contain all the source code used in the book.

Ajax is taking us into the next generation of web applications. Ajax has broken the client-server barrier by decoupling the client from the server, but an Ajax application still needs a server to extract content from. The most effective use of Ajax and the server requires an understanding of REST, an architectural style used to define Web services.

Ajax Patterns and Best Practices explores dynamic web applications that combine Ajax and REST as a single solution. A major advantage of REST is that like Ajax, it can be used with today’s existing technologies.

This is an ideal book whether or not you have already created an Ajax application. Because the book outlines various patterns and best practices, you can quickly check and verify that you’re building an efficient Ajax application.

Learn How to Program Using Any Web Browser is a book about general principles of good programming practice for complete novices. The target reader is likely a twelve or thirteen year old, who is just starting to get curious about what makes a computer work—or an office worker who has been using computer applications for years, and would like to spend some time delving deeper into what makes them tick. Learn How to Program Using Any Web Browser will teach the basics of programming using JavaScript. The software used for teaching programming will be JavaScript, which can be written using any text editor, and displayed in almost any Web browser, regardless of operating system. Despite the unfortunate word “script” in the language name, in actuality JavaScript is a modern programming language. While displaying the results of running JavaScript programs in Web pages will be used to motivate readers—a simple example is changing text when the user moves the mouse over it in a Web page—very emphatically, this is not a book about programming JavaScript.

The Definitive JavaScript Resource. Complete coverage of the W3C DOM2 standard

Build dynamic, cross-browser Web pages using JavaScript–the premier client-side scripting language in use today on the Web. First learn the basics of the language, then combine syntax and theory to develop practical applications–create a variety of windows including special dialogs, use the W3C Document Object Model (DOM) 2 to manipulate (X)HTML documents, add sizzle to your pages with special effects, and improve usability. With full coverage of advanced topics such as using embedded objects and remote JavaScript, this is the ultimate resource for beginning and advanced users alike.

• Learn core language features such as data types, objects, and regular expressions
• Manipulate (X)HTML and XML documents using the W3C DOM 2
• Take advantage of the standard event models in DOM 2 for robust event handling
• Control windows and frames with the Windows object
• Validate forms before sending them to server-side programs
• Add dynamic effects to Web pages, such as rollovers and animation
• Extend JavaScript’s capabilities using embedded multimedia objects
• Interact with servers on the Internet using remote JavaScript
• Understand JavaScript security policies
• Troubleshoot and debug your JavaScript programs

Ajax, the popular term for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML, is one of the most important combinations of technologies for web developers to know these days. With its rich grouping of technologies, Ajax developers can create interactive web applications with XML-based web services, using JavaScript in the browser to process the web server
response.

Taking complete advantage of Ajax, however, requires something more than your typical “how-to” book. What it calls for is Ajax Hacks from O’Reilly. This valuable guide provides direct, hands-on solutions that take the mystery out of Ajax’s many capabilities. Each hack represents a clever way to accomplish a specific task, saving you countless hours of searching for the right answer.

A smart collection of 80 insider tips and tricks, Ajax Hacks covers all of the technology’s finer points. Want to build next-generation web applications today? This book can show you how. Among the multitude of topics addressed, it shows you techniques for:

• Using Ajax with Google Maps and Yahoo Maps
• Displaying Weather.com data
• Scraping stock quotes
• Fetching postal codes
• Building web forms with auto-complete functionality

Ajax Hacks also features a number of advanced hacks for accelerated web developers. Discover how to create huge, maintainable bookmarklets, how to use client-side storage for Ajax applications, and how to call a built-in Java object from JavaScript using Ajax. The book even addresses best practices for testing Ajax applications and improving maintenance, performance, and reliability for JavaScript code.

JavaScript is the preferred programming language for Web page applications, letting you enhance your sites with interactive, dynamic, and personalized pages. This fully updated guide shows you how to take advantage of JavaScript’s client-side scripting techniques for the newest versions of Netscape and Internet Explorer, even if you’ve never programmed before.

You begin with basic syntax and learn about data types and how to structure code for decision-making. Then you learn to use dates, strings, and other basic objects of JavaScript. Next, you see how to use JavaScript to manipulate objects provided by the browser, such as forms and windows. From there, you move into advanced topics like using cookies and dynamic HTML.

After you have a solid foundation, you explore dynamic generation of Web content using server-side scripting and back-end databases. And you practice what you learn by building a sample application as you go.

* Dispels the myth that JavaScript is a “baby” language and
demonstrates why it is the scripting language of choice used in the
design of millions of Web pages and server-side applications

* Quickly covers JavaScript basics and then moves on to more advanced
topics such as object-oriented programming, XML, Web services, and
remote scripting
* Addresses the many issues that Web application
developers face, including internationalization, security, privacy,
optimization, intellectual property issues, and obfuscation
* Builds on the reader’s basic understanding of HTML, CSS, and the Web in general

Do you spend too much time doing repetitive production tasks such as
placing and replacing images, resizing them, dragging them from one
document to another, and preparing images for printing instead of being
creative? Do you use Adobe Photoshop CS2 and have some experience with
scripting? You’re in luck. Since Adobe Creative Suite 2 was created
with built-in support for scripting, virtually every repetitive or
time-consuming task that creative professionals have to do in the Adobe
Creative Suite can be streamlined with the help of a script. This book
describes how to use JavaScript to manipulate and extend Adobe
Photoshop within Adobe Creative Suite 2, and provides reference
information for the JavaScript objects, properties, and functions
defined by Adobe’s applications. Now available in print for the first
time, this scripting reference provides the information experienced
JavaScript users need to create custom scripts for Photoshop, whether
you’re looking to automate Camera Raw options and settings,
automatically resize and export large batches of images into your
page-layout application, or want to automatically add metadata, like a
copyright notice, to selected image files. These are just a few
examples of how you can use Photoshop CS2’s built-in scripting
capabilities to save you from hours of repetitive tasks.