Customer Reviews

JavaScript: A Beginner's Guide, Second Edition

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Javascript: A Beginner's Guide is the best book that I have seen for beginners. The book is written like a text book and provides novice programmers with information on basic programmer's terminology, etc. Exercises are provided to help develop programming skills. When I start offering javascript class, this will likely be my choice for a textbook.

As a beginner's book, I give this 10 stars. This is a great book for people completely new to programming. For example, graphics designers without programming experience who want to develop web pages could easily use this book to learn javascript. Experienced programmers, however, may find this book to be too elementary. The author takes several pages to define what a variable is, which may be aggravating to experienced programmers who just want to learn a new language.

I have no programming experience and am teaching myself JavaScript. I tried a couple of other books, which left me feeling frustrated-even if they were supposed to be for beginners. Desperate, I tried this one and am happy to say that I'm writing small scripts and becoming familiar with all the different options.

The lessons are well written and easy to follow. The little progress checks and tests at the end of the chapters help highlight the lessons and, if you get any answers wrong, show you where to go back to reread/practice. Although a beginner's book, it gives hints of what can be done, which keep me motivated to continue learning.

It may be that I "outgrow" this book at some point, but I'm likely to keep it around for a quick reference.

An excellent book -- here's why:

1) The author is an excellent teacher. You will have a solid understanding of the fundamental concepts of Javascript when finished with this book.

2) The code samples are clear and easy to try.

3) Each chapter covers a fundamental aspect of the Javascript language, such as variables, conditional loops, objects, etc.

4) Provides mastery checks at the end of the lesson to ensure you learned the materials, as needed.

It's perfect for the beginner, yet excellent for the more advanced programmer who wants to learn the starting fundamentals of this language. In my opinion, it's a 5 star book. (500+ pages and clearly-illustrated.)

Web design has gone through major changes over the years and with the addition of JavaScript web pages have so much more excitement to them. After reading this book and working with examples I was able to create basic JavaScript code and add things to the web pages.

The book is an excellent learning tool and easy to follow along with. The title is a Beginner's guide and there could not be a more exact description. The book has the step by step examples and each project has review questions.

The book lacks a cd with any tools or examples, although you can get free files from the internet. In updated version this might be something to add. The book takes you from getting the script in web pages to frames and forms.

If you new to Javascripting or have a need to brush up on some things, than you may want to get a hold of this book. Overall this is by far the best beginner text I have had a chance to work with.

If you are a programmer and you know nothing about JavaScript, this is a good place to start. Mr. Pollock's style is easy to read and follow. His examples, while somewhat humorous, are illustrative and educational. His pace seems a little slow at first, but overall he presents a very cohesive study of the fundamental JavaScript concepts. I would recommend this book to anyone who needs to add a little JavaScript to his resume.

This is a very good book, especially for the money. It is what it claims to be, "A Beginner's Guide." Don't look here for advanced javascript (only the last chapter deals with that). I bought this book with little understanding of Javascript. After reading this book, I have the foundational skills I need write Javascript. Highly recommended!

This is definitely a book for JavaScript beginners, which is exactly what I needed. It included plenty of examples and even had mastery questions at the end of each of the chapters. But I found the book extremely helpful, even if slightly rudimentary having had some programming experience in other languages. But I liked the step by step approach and getting to know a few of the major objects and concepts in JavaScript.

I read and study a lot of different programming languages. After reading the review from others who also bought this book I was convinced this book was for me. I am now halfway done reading and interacting with the book. The author is awesome. He takes you step-by-step in learning JavaScript. After each chapter he has hands-on assignements that build from one chapter to the next.

For someone who wants a beginning book in JavaScript, this is the best book I have come across. (I also have Gosselin's "JavaScript, Third Edition"; the O'Reilly "JavaScript The Definitive Guide"; and the Shelly Cashman series on JavaScript).

My college JavaScript class uses another book (the Gosselin book) as the official textbook of the course. I find I understand everything much better if I read Pollock's chapter(s) first, then go to the Gosselin to read more and do the required exercises.

I'm new to programming and at first, I was struggling in the class. After getting Pollock's book, I've now got an A. Thank you, John Pollock, for a great book!

What I like about this book compared to others, is that it gives clear concise descriptions. The chapters (or modules) are well thought out and the examples complement what the subject matter is addressing. I've bought other books on JavaScript, and I must say that (as a beginner) this is a treasure. It is exactly what I was looking for and by just reading the first few chapters has given me a great insight into this coding language. To me there is no better book on the market. You won't go wrong to get this book if you want to get a solid foundation in JavaScript. I highly recommend this book.