Many years back, I was told that Javascript was harmful, and I remember being annoyed with endless popup when I right-clicked an image to download it.
Now it seems suddenly that Javascript is great, and you can do a lot of things with it to let users have native-like web application experience.
I admit I have missed 6-7 years of Javascript literature, so I hope to start anew with SO kickstarting me to understand the following:
- Is Javascript mainly concerned about user interface i.e. smoothen interaction between application and users and not about logic processing, number crunching or form processing etc.?
- Can Javascript write to local hard drive (besides cookies)?
- Can Javascript web application run with Javascript capabilities in browsers turned off? (I would think outright no, but an article on Adaptive Path said ‘maybe’)
- Is AJAX illegal to use due to Eolas patent claim? Is it worth it spending effort learning it when the future is not secure? (I know AJAX is not Javascript)
Thanks. Hoping for enlightenment.
Not really. However, as HTML5 support becomes more widespread you’ll be able to use things like Web Storage and Web SQL. You won’t be able to write arbitrary files on the user’s hard drive, but using those two technologies you’ll be able to persistently store and access data.
It really depends on how you define “web application.” You can write web apps without using Javascript for anything but UI candy, in which case you can degrade gracefully without without it. However, it’s also possible to write web apps that rely heavily (entirely, even) on Javascript, which will utterly fail without it.
I’m not a lawyer, but I’d agree with the other answers — you shouldn’t worry about it. I’m certainly still writing AJAX stuff 🙂
It’s about both. And more than that.
Javascript has really come into its own in the past few years. Browsers have gotten a lot faster at executing it quickly, and people have been figuring out new ways to use the language itself to its full potential. You can really start using Javascript like a full-out application programming language, and not just to write little scripts that animate something or validate input.
If you’re just getting back into the language and haven’t read Crockford yet, I would highly recommend it. It’s a great starting point to realizing the full potential of Javascript.
Edit: Some good Crockford Links
Javascript: The World’s Most Misunderstood Programming Language
Javascript: The Good Parts (This is a presentation. Crockford also wrote a book by the same name that I haven’t read myself, but I hear it’s quite excellent.)