jQuery and JavaScript Phrasebook

Understanding JavaScript

JavaScript is a programming language much like any other. What separates JavaScript from other programming languages is that the browser has a built-in interpreter that can parse and execute the language. That means you can write complex applications running in the browser that have direct access to the browser, web page elements, and the web server.

This allows JavaScript code to dynamically add, modify, or remove elements from a web page without reloading it. Access to the browser gives you access to events such as mouse movements and clicks. This is what enables JavaScript to provide functionality such as dynamic lists as well as drag and drop. Figure 1.1 shows an example of downloading a web page from a server and ...