Jonathan Snook

JavaScript is the industry standard client-side scripting language that is used in web applications. Professional JavaScript Frameworks: Prototype, YUI, Ext JS, Dojo and MooTools offers an examination of some of the top JavaScript (JS) frameworks that are available, with practical examples and explanations of what each does best. Over the past few years, there's been a small renaissance in JavaScript as a language. A variety of projects have sprung up to build reusable JS libraries and frameworks -- and at this point, a good number of them have matured and shown staying power that they're worth taking a serious look at and relying on in professional projects. JavaScript has grown in popularity in parallel with the Web and today is supported by all major browsers and new web technologies. JavaScript has been extended over time to deliver high-performing and incredibly impressive Web user experiences, using technologies including Adobe Flash, AJAX, and Microsoft Silverlight.As JavaScript is used increasingly for "serious" development on the Web, the lessons that have been learned and the tools that have been invented along the way are being consolidated and shared by developers in the form of libraries and frameworks. However, since JavaScript is such a flexible and dynamic language, each framework can present very different approaches to the problems of web development -- each with its own pros and cons. Coverageof the individual libraries and frameworks includes: Prototype: Extending and Enhancing DOM Elements Prototype: Handling Cross-Browser Events Prototype: Simplifying AJAX and Dynamic Data Prototype: Working with Forms Prototype: Manipulating Common Data Structures and Functions Prototype: Extending Prototype Yahoo!User Interface Library (YUI): Traversing and Manipulating the DOM with YUI YUI: Handling Cross-Browser Events YUI: Using Animation and Drag and Drop YUI: Simplifying AJAX and Dynamic Loading YUI: Building User Interfaces with Widgets Enhancing Development with the YUI Core YUI: Dealing with Data, Tables, and Charts Working with YUI CSS Tools Building and Deploying YUI ExtJS: Architecture and Library Conventions ExtJS: Elements, DomHelper, and Templates ExtJS: Components, Layouts, and Windows ExtJS: Handling Data and Talking with the Server ExtJS: DataViews and Grids ExtJS: Form Controls, Validation Dojo: Enhancing Development with Dojo Core Dojo: Manipulating the DOM Dojo: Handling Events Dojo: Composing Animations Dojo: Working with AJAX and Dynamic Data Dojo: Building User Interfaces with Widgets Building and Deploying Dojo Expanding Dojo Enhancing Development with MooTools MooTools: Manipulating the DOM and Handling Events MooTools: Simplifying AJAX and Handling Dynamic Data MooTools: Building User Interfaces and Using Animation

If you're a web developer with previous JavaScript and DOM scripting experience, Accelerated DOM Scripting with Ajax, APIs, and Libraries is perfect for you to take your knowledge to the next level. This book is about JavaScript and using the document object model—the conduit to the HTML document. This book is not about learning how to program JavaScript from scratch. It starts with the assumption that you have done some JavaScript development before and understand the JavaScript syntax. This book builds on that knowledge to give you a deeper understanding of DOM scripting and how to apply that to your projects. It uses this new understanding to describe what JavaScript libraries are and show you how they can be applied to your project. The book will also explain Ajax and how best to plan and apply it to your projects. It explains how to build simple animation objects for adding movement to elements on the page. There are straightforward examples that demonstrate the techniques used throughout the book. JavaScript has seen a resurgence in popularity over the past few years, and with it has come an exploration of the power of the language as well as what it can do within the browser. This book will explain techniques new and old—such as closures, encapsulation, and inheritance—that many are using and how you can best apply them to your own projects. By reading this book, you should have a greater understanding of how JavaScript works and be able to use advanced concepts such as closures and event delegation to build more flexible applications for the Web. You'll walk away with a greater appreciation for JavaScript libraries and how they can simplify and speed up your development. You'll also be able to implement Ajax effectively into your site, create special effects, use JavaScript libraries, and know how best to apply these libraries to your projects.