Referred to as: JavaScript, JS
Category: Client-Side Programming, Front-End Web Development
Description
More than 9 out of 10 web browsers in this world run client-side code written in the same programming language, namely, JavaScript (or JS for short). The rules that define how a program is written in JS are similar to the ones for Java and C++. But there ends the similarity. In fact, JS is not part of the Java platform licensed by Oracle!
JS is almost exclusively used to run scripts only within a browser on the end-user’s device. Java, by contrast, is used to employ scripts on back-end web servers to deliver content to a web page as requested by the user via a touch/click/page load.
JS, along with HTML and CSS, is the basic building block of any web page. HTML spells out how a web page is organized into headings, paragraphs, navigation bars, and so on. CSS makes the elements within the web page more presentable in terms of color, size, spacing, and alignment. JS, for its part, enhances the way your web page or its constituent elements respond to the user.
Just a few lines of JS code can make the display in your browser more interactive and animated as different from a static HTML file. Click To TweetIt adds a new layer of interactivity to an otherwise static HTML page and helps to dynamically update content on a web page. These were the main reasons why JS was developed by Netscape in the first place back in 1995.
Next time you visit a web page and see a floating video you can drag anywhere across the screen, remember, it’s JS at work. Interactive maps, with stunning features like zooming, panning and panoramic views, are JS-enabled. Dynamic elements on web pages, ranging from those richly-detailed 2D/3D graphics to more matter-of-fact “contact us” and “sign-up” forms are all JS-powered.
JS code is all-text and the syntax is simple. The software component in your browser takes the code and executes it when you browse the page. So, you don’t need any elaborate software program to write code or convert it into machine-readable format. A simple text editor (e.g., Notepad++) will do. Most importantly, JS runs in all existing browsers.
Correct use: This isn’t really applicable in this case.
Our take: JS is not just the market leader among client-side languages, it is the market! That’s not all. It works across multiple browsers and comes with lots of libraries and frameworks in tow. So, if you are a go-getter web developer, JS is something right up your alley.
Do: Not applicable
Don’t: Not applicable
Introduced: JS was introduced in early December 1995 by Netscape.
What Google says:
What experts say: Here is an article by Torque that talks about JS