Mastering Modular JavaScript

Preface

Long after the printing press was invented, publishing books remains a challenging endeavor. Yes, there’s typically an author (or authors) who scribble the content wherever and whenever they find time to do so. But there’s also a content editor, tasked with helping the author transform their stream of consciousness into a relatable story that’s not too dry to read—something to be especially careful about when it comes to technical or business books. We have the technical reviewers, watchful subject-matter experts on the lookout for egregious mistakes in technical definitions or interpretations. And lastly, of course, we have the copyeditor, the typo linters of prose and last bastion of proper grammar. Thus far, however, we’ve barely scratched the surface: everyone mentioned here is interested mostly in the contents of the book, but there are other aspects to the bookmaking process as well. There’s also, as an example, the typesetter, whose job is to ensure that the book looks good when it goes to print—bidding good riddance to orphans and widows, poorly wrapped lines of code, and so much more. Someone has to design the cover, and another person must approve the table of contents for the first draft so that the author gets a contract. In addition, several people oversee the process that culminates in the book going to press, usually referred to as production. Once copies are printed, they need to be distributed. Eventually, the book hits the shelves (physical or otherwise) ...