2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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---
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language: javascript
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2013-09-03 04:33:53 +00:00
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contributors:
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- ["Adam Brenecki", "http://adam.brenecki.id.au"]
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filename: javascript.js
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2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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---
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Javascript was created by Netscape's Brendan Eich in 1995. It was originally
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2013-06-30 08:03:10 +00:00
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intended as a simpler scripting language for websites, complimenting the use of
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Java for more complex web applications, but its tight integration with Web pages
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and built-in support in browsers has caused it to become far more common than
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Java in web frontends.
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2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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2013-07-04 10:19:35 +00:00
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JavaScript isn't just limited to web browsers, though: Node.js, a project that
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provides a standalone runtime for Google Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine, is
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becoming more and more popular.
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2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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Feedback would be highly appreciated! You can reach me at
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[@adambrenecki](https://twitter.com/adambrenecki), or
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[adam@brenecki.id.au](mailto:adam@brenecki.id.au).
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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```js
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// Comments are like C. Single-line comments start with two slashes,
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/* and multiline comments start with slash-star
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and end with star-slash */
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// Statements can be terminated by ;
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doStuff();
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// ... but they don't have to be, as semicolons are automatically inserted
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// wherever there's a newline, except in certain cases.
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doStuff()
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// So that we don't have to worry about those certain cases (for now), we'll
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// leave them on.
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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///////////////////////////////////
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// 1. Numbers, Strings and Operators
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// Javascript has one number type (which is a 64-bit IEEE 754 double).
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// As with Lua, don't freak out about the lack of ints: doubles have a 52-bit
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// mantissa, which is enough to store integers up to about 9✕10¹⁵ precisely.
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3; // = 3
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1.5; // = 1.5
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2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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2013-06-30 08:14:25 +00:00
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// All the basic arithmetic works as you'd expect.
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1 + 1; // = 2
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8 - 1; // = 7
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10 * 2; // = 20
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35 / 5; // = 7
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// Including uneven division.
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5 / 2; // = 2.5
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// Bitwise operations also work; when you perform a bitwise operation your float
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// is converted to a signed int *up to* 32 bits.
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1 << 2; // = 4
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// Precedence is enforced with parentheses.
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(1 + 3) * 2; // = 8
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// There are three special not-a-real-number values:
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Infinity; // result of e.g. 1/0
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-Infinity; // result of e.g. -1/0
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NaN; // result of e.g. 0/0
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// There's also a boolean type.
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true;
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false;
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// Strings are created with ' or ".
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'abc';
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"Hello, world";
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// Negation uses the ! symbol
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!true; // = false
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!false; // = true
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// Equality is ==
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1 == 1; // = true
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2 == 1; // = false
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// Inequality is !=
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1 != 1; // = false
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2 != 1; // = true
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// More comparisons
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1 < 10; // = true
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1 > 10; // = false
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2 <= 2; // = true
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2 >= 2; // = true
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// Strings are concatenated with +
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"Hello " + "world!"; // = "Hello world!"
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// and are compared with < and >
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"a" < "b"; // = true
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// Type coercion is performed for comparisons...
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"5" == 5; // = true
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// ...unless you use ===
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"5" === 5; // = false
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// You can access characters in a string with charAt
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"This is a string".charAt(0);
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// There's also null and undefined
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null; // used to indicate a deliberate non-value
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undefined; // used to indicate a value is not currently present (although undefined
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// is actually a value itself)
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2013-08-14 05:12:15 +00:00
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// false, null, undefined, NaN, 0 and "" are falsy, and everything else is truthy.
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// Note that 0 is falsy and "0" is truthy, even though 0 == "0".
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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///////////////////////////////////
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// 2. Variables, Arrays and Objects
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2013-06-29 11:39:19 +00:00
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// Variables are declared with the var keyword. Javascript is dynamically typed,
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// so you don't need to specify type. Assignment uses a single = character.
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var someVar = 5;
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// if you leave the var keyword off, you won't get an error...
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someOtherVar = 10;
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2013-06-30 08:18:50 +00:00
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// ...but your variable will be created in the global scope, not in the scope
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// you defined it in.
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// Variables declared without being assigned to are set to undefined.
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var someThirdVar; // = undefined
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2013-06-30 09:27:40 +00:00
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// There's shorthand for performing math operations on variables:
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someVar += 5; // equivalent to someVar = someVar + 5; someVar is 10 now
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someVar *= 10; // now someVar is 100
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// and an even-shorter-hand for adding or subtracting 1
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someVar++; // now someVar is 101
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someVar--; // back to 100
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2013-06-29 11:39:19 +00:00
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// Arrays are ordered lists of values, of any type.
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var myArray = ["Hello", 45, true];
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// Their members can be accessed using the square-brackets subscript syntax.
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// Array indices start at zero.
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myArray[1]; // = 45
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2013-10-09 22:03:39 +00:00
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// Arrays are mutable and of variable length.
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myArray.push("World");
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myArray.length; // = 4
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2013-06-29 11:39:19 +00:00
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// JavaScript's objects are equivalent to 'dictionaries' or 'maps' in other
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// languages: an unordered collection of key-value pairs.
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var myObj = {key1: "Hello", key2: "World"};
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// Keys are strings, but quotes aren't required if they're a valid
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// JavaScript identifier. Values can be any type.
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var myObj = {myKey: "myValue", "my other key": 4};
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// Object attributes can also be accessed using the subscript syntax,
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myObj["my other key"]; // = 4
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// ... or using the dot syntax, provided the key is a valid identifier.
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myObj.myKey; // = "myValue"
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// Objects are mutable; values can be changed and new keys added.
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myObj.myThirdKey = true;
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2013-06-30 08:44:53 +00:00
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// If you try to access a value that's not yet set, you'll get undefined.
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myObj.myFourthKey; // = undefined
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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///////////////////////////////////
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// 3. Logic and Control Structures
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// The if structure works as you'd expect.
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var count = 1;
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if (count == 3){
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// evaluated if count is 3
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} else if (count == 4) {
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// evaluated if count is 4
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} else {
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// evaluated if it's not either 3 or 4
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}
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// As does while.
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while (true) {
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// An infinite loop!
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}
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// Do-while loops are like while loops, except they always run at least once.
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var input
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do {
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input = getInput();
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} while (!isValid(input))
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2013-08-14 07:51:44 +00:00
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// the for loop is the same as C and Java:
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// initialisation; continue condition; iteration.
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for (var i = 0; i < 5; i++){
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// will run 5 times
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}
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// && is logical and, || is logical or
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if (house.size == "big" && house.colour == "blue"){
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house.contains = "bear";
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}
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if (colour == "red" || colour == "blue"){
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// colour is either red or blue
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}
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// && and || "short circuit", which is useful for setting default values.
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var name = otherName || "default";
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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///////////////////////////////////
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// 4. Functions, Scope and Closures
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2013-07-04 10:19:24 +00:00
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// JavaScript functions are declared with the function keyword.
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function myFunction(thing){
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return thing.toUpperCase();
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}
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myFunction("foo"); // = "FOO"
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// JavaScript functions are first class objects, so they can be reassigned to
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// different variable names and passed to other functions as arguments - for
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// example, when supplying an event handler:
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function myFunction(){
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// this code will be called in 5 seconds' time
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}
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setTimeout(myFunction, 5000);
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// Note: setTimeout isn't part of the JS language, but is provided by browsers
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// and Node.js.
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2013-08-15 11:03:44 +00:00
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// Function objects don't even have to be declared with a name - you can write
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// an anonymous function definition directly into the arguments of another.
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setTimeout(function(){
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// this code will be called in 5 seconds' time
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}, 5000);
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// JavaScript has function scope; functions get their own scope but other blocks
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// do not.
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if (true){
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var i = 5;
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}
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i; // = 5 - not undefined as you'd expect in a block-scoped language
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// This has led to a common pattern of "immediately-executing anonymous
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// functions", which prevent temporary variables from leaking into the global
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// scope.
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(function(){
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var temporary = 5;
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// We can access the global scope by assiging to the 'global object', which
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// in a web browser is always 'window'. The global object may have a
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// different name in non-browser environments such as Node.js.
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window.permanent = 10;
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})();
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temporary; // raises ReferenceError
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permanent; // = 10
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// One of JavaScript's most powerful features is closures. If a function is
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// defined inside another function, the inner function has access to all the
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// outer function's variables, even after the outer function exits.
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function sayHelloInFiveSeconds(name){
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var prompt = "Hello, " + name + "!";
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function inner(){
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alert(prompt);
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}
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setTimeout(inner, 5000);
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// setTimeout is asynchronous, so the sayHelloInFiveSeconds function will
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// exit immediately, and setTimeout will call inner afterwards. However,
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// because inner is "closed over" sayHelloInFiveSeconds, inner still has
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// access to the 'prompt' variable when it is finally called.
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}
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sayHelloInFiveSeconds("Adam"); // will open a popup with "Hello, Adam!" in 5s
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2013-07-04 16:24:21 +00:00
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///////////////////////////////////
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// 5. More about Objects; Constructors and Prototypes
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// Objects can contain functions.
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var myObj = {
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myFunc: function(){
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return "Hello world!";
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}
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};
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myObj.myFunc(); // = "Hello world!"
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// When functions attached to an object are called, they can access the object
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// they're attached to using the this keyword.
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myObj = {
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myString: "Hello world!",
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myFunc: function(){
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return this.myString;
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}
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};
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myObj.myFunc(); // = "Hello world!"
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// What this is set to has to do with how the function is called, not where
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// it's defined. So, our function doesn't work if it isn't called in the
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// context of the object.
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var myFunc = myObj.myFunc;
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myFunc(); // = undefined
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// Inversely, a function can be assigned to the object and gain access to it
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// through this, even if it wasn't attached when it was defined.
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var myOtherFunc = function(){
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return this.myString.toUpperCase();
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}
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myObj.myOtherFunc = myOtherFunc;
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myObj.myOtherFunc(); // = "HELLO WORLD!"
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// When you call a function with the new keyword, a new object is created, and
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// made available to the function via this. Functions designed to be called
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// like this are called constructors.
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var MyConstructor = function(){
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this.myNumber = 5;
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}
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myNewObj = new MyConstructor(); // = {myNumber: 5}
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myNewObj.myNumber; // = 5
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// Every JavaScript object has a 'prototype'. When you go to access a property
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// on an object that doesn't exist on the actual object, the interpreter will
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// look at its prototype.
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// Some JS implementations let you access an object's prototype on the magic
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// property __proto__. While this is useful for explaining prototypes it's not
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// part of the standard; we'll get to standard ways of using prototypes later.
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var myObj = {
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myString: "Hello world!",
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};
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var myPrototype = {
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meaningOfLife: 42,
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myFunc: function(){
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return this.myString.toLowerCase()
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}
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};
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myObj.__proto__ = myPrototype;
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myObj.meaningOfLife; // = 42
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// This works for functions, too.
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myObj.myFunc(); // = "hello world!"
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// Of course, if your property isn't on your prototype, the prototype's
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// prototype is searched, and so on.
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myPrototype.__proto__ = {
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myBoolean: true
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};
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myObj.myBoolean; // = true
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// There's no copying involved here; each object stores a reference to its
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// prototype. This means we can alter the prototype and our changes will be
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// reflected everywhere.
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myPrototype.meaningOfLife = 43;
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myObj.meaningOfLife; // = 43
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// We mentioned that __proto__ was non-standard, and there's no standard way to
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2013-08-19 22:19:48 +00:00
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// change the prototype of an existing object. However, there are two ways to
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// create a new object with a given prototype.
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// The first is Object.create, which is a recent addition to JS, and therefore
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// not available in all implementations yet.
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var myObj = Object.create(myPrototype);
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myObj.meaningOfLife; // = 43
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// The second way, which works anywhere, has to do with constructors.
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// Constructors have a property called prototype. This is *not* the prototype of
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// the constructor function itself; instead, it's the prototype that new objects
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// are given when they're created with that constructor and the new keyword.
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2013-10-03 18:02:16 +00:00
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MyConstructor.prototype = {
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myNumber: 5,
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getMyNumber: function(){
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return this.myNumber;
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}
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};
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var myNewObj2 = new MyConstructor();
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myNewObj2.getMyNumber(); // = 5
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myNewObj2.myNumber = 6
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myNewObj2.getMyNumber(); // = 6
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// Built-in types like strings and numbers also have constructors that create
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// equivalent wrapper objects.
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var myNumber = 12;
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var myNumberObj = new Number(12);
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myNumber == myNumberObj; // = true
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// Except, they aren't exactly equivalent.
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typeof(myNumber); // = 'number'
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typeof(myNumberObj); // = 'object'
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myNumber === myNumberObj; // = false
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if (0){
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// This code won't execute, because 0 is falsy.
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}
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if (Number(0)){
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// This code *will* execute, because Number(0) is truthy.
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}
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// However, the wrapper objects and the regular builtins share a prototype, so
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// you can actually add functionality to a string, for instance.
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String.prototype.firstCharacter = function(){
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return this.charAt(0);
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}
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"abc".firstCharacter(); // = "a"
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// This fact is often used in "polyfilling", which is implementing newer
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// features of JavaScript in an older subset of JavaScript, so that they can be
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// used in older environments such as outdated browsers.
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// For instance, we mentioned that Object.create isn't yet available in all
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2013-07-03 05:51:03 +00:00
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// implementations, but we can still use it with this polyfill:
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if (Object.create === undefined){ // don't overwrite it if it exists
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Object.create = function(proto){
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// make a temporary constructor with the right prototype
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var Constructor = function(){};
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Constructor.prototype = proto;
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// then use it to create a new, appropriately-prototyped object
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return new Constructor();
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}
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}
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2013-06-29 10:14:10 +00:00
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```
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2013-06-30 08:03:10 +00:00
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## Further Reading
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The [Mozilla Developer
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|
Network](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript) provides
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excellent documentation for JavaScript as it's used in browsers. Plus, it's a
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wiki, so as you learn more you can help others out by sharing your own
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knowledge.
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2013-06-30 09:27:40 +00:00
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2013-07-04 10:19:35 +00:00
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MDN's [A re-introduction to
|
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JavaScript](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/A_re-introduction_to_JavaScript)
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covers much of the concepts covered here in more detail. This guide has quite
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deliberately only covered the JavaScript language itself; if you want to learn
|
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more about how to use JavaScript in web pages, start by learning about the
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[Document Object
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Model](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Using_the_W3C_DOM_Level_1_Core)
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2013-07-15 00:06:33 +00:00
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[Javascript Garden](http://bonsaiden.github.io/JavaScript-Garden/) is an in-depth
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guide of all the counter-intuitive parts of the language.
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|
2013-06-30 09:27:40 +00:00
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In addition to direct contributors to this article, some content is adapted
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from Louie Dinh's Python tutorial on this site, and the [JS
|
|
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|
Tutorial](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/A_re-introduction_to_JavaScript)
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on the Mozilla Developer Network.
|