Understand the four layers of JavaScript OOP in one short lesson

6 highlights from Axel Rauschmayer's webcast

By Amy Jollymore
March 4, 2014
Jaspilite banded iron formation Jaspilite banded iron formation (source: James St. John via Flickr)

Last week Axel Rauschmayer presented “The Four Layers of JavaScript OOP.” His approach to teaching JavaScript OOP is doing so incrementally, through layers. Each of the four layers builds upon the last. The lesson runs just under an hour.

  • The live audience (1,500 attendees) brought certain foreknowledge to the course, represented by this graph (based on a live poll). Most individuals had knowledge of object oriented programming, whether with JavaScript or another language, and fewest had knowledge of prototype chains.  [at 01:30]
  • Axel walked through an overview of the 4 layers of JavaScript OOP and summarized each. [at 2:25]
  • Layer 1, Single object. [at 3:55]
  • Layer 2, Prototype chain. [at 14:52]

Layers 1 and 2 together form a simple core, which you can refer back to if confusion sets in. This way you can re-ground yourself at any point in the foundations of the course.

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  • Layer 3, Constructor. [at 22:02]
  • Layer 4, Constructor Inheritance. [at 32:42]

About Axel

Dr. Axel Rauschmayer specializes in JavaScript and web technologies. He blogs, edits JavaScript Weekly, teaches web development and organizes the JavaScript user group in Munich. Axel has been programming since 1985, developing web applications since 1995 and held his first talk on Ajax in 2006. In 1999, he was technical manager at a German internet startup that later expanded internationally. You can find Axel on Twitter at @rauschma.

Speaking JavaScript 

Axel’s book Speaking JavaScript is available now as an eBook.

Post topics: Web Programming
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