Amazon.com: Javascript and Dhtml Cookbook: Danny Goodman: Books

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32 Reviews

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4.7 out of 5 stars (32 customer reviews)

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53 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Book from Danny Goodman, May 15, 2003

By

neihtn (Princeton, NJ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: JavaScript & DHTML Cookbook (Paperback)

Danny Goodman is the author of "JavaScript Bible", probably the most popular book on JavaScript as it went through 5 editions, the last one being the Gold edition published in 2001. I have used JavaScript Bible extensively and intensively, often longing for a cross-index of recipes for solving problems. This new book by the author addresses that need in the form of a cookbook, one carefully written and eminently readable. Not only does he give clear recipes, he also discusses some history and background, lists which browser version is required, both for Netscape and Internet Explorer, then weighs the pros and cons of different approaches.

The recipes range from the mundane, like opening a window, to the more esoteric for positioning page elements or creating dynamic contents. Even if one does not plan to use a recipe, it is still enlightening to see how JavaScript or some feature of it is brought to bear on solving a particular problem. Most cookbooks assume you already know the subject quite well, then launch on intricate discussions often discouraging to neophytes. Here, the way Danny Goodman writes, the clarity of his style, and the completeness of his coverage, make this book well suited to every reader level. If your JavaScript knowledge is only nascent, you will be enlightened with this book. If you are a JavaScript "expert", be surprised that you will still learn many new techniques.

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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't read this review. Just buy the book., March 29, 2005

By

.NET Code Monkey - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)

This review is from: JavaScript & DHTML Cookbook (Paperback)

I am an ASP.NET developer, and I have never been too crazy about JavaScript. It is much too slow to develop, it is finicky to debug, and maintenance is just ridiculous.

That is exactly why I love this book. It shows me exactly what I need to know to add some VERY sophisticated client-side pizzazz to my applications. Unlike most programming books, you don't have to read half the book to understand the advanced concepts. Each "recipe" has a more-than-adequate supporting explanation.

For the past FOUR YEARS, I have consulted this book above all other JavaScript references. And now with ASP.NET AJAX released, it is more helpful than ever...easily giving you the edge over other .NET developers that live in a "code-behind-only" world. It is well worth the price.

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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for what it is, November 17, 2005

By

Jase T. Wolfe - See all my reviews

This review is from: JavaScript & DHTML Cookbook (Paperback)

In the computer world, cookbook / tips / "hack" style books are a funny thing. Unlike food cookbooks you purchase when you have a specific culinary goal, scripting cookbooks are typically bought without much knowledge of the information that they are going to present to you. This can be doubly so when you are purchasing from an online vendor that has not made the table of contents (TOC) available. At the time I write this, Amazon.com has not. O'Reilly's does, and I encourage you to visit this title's TOC page on O'Reilly's web site first before you purchase.

For what this book covers, it is covered very well. The included scripting projects are indeed useful, efficiently written, presented in a user friendly manner, and as a whole contain very few errors. Each script example is presented by introducing a web design problem, followed by a solution discussion, a working script, and a follow-up if needed. None of the code examples in the book are included, but again, O'Reilly's web site for this book has the files available for download.

This is not a stand-alone title, it is not for JavaScript beginners, and it is not a cookbook that provides generic solutions. This is a great companion book to the author's other book, "Dynamic HTML: The Definitive Reference" (ISBN 1565924940) and David Flanagan's title "JavaScript: The Definitive Guide" (ISBN 0596000480). Web developers looking to better utilize HTML and JavaScript will find (or already know) that these two mentioned books are invaluable. As for this cookbook, if you see something in the TOC that interests you, make the purchase and you certainly wont regret it. But if you don't, feel comfortable skipping it.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, unless you are using a framework like jQuery
While I don't want to turn people away from this book, I would like to point out that many of the recipes in this book (like DOM manipulation, Ajax, styling, etc. Read more

Published 18 months ago by psulover901

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for reference and learning
I was still relatively new to Javascript when I got this book, so I just went through all of the code examples one-by-one to see how they worked. Read more

Published on December 30, 2009 by John Harding

5.0 out of 5 stars Very useful, lots of gems
I'm a beginner/intermediate JS programmer and I found this book tremendously useful. I had to design a site for control and monitoring of an embedded device and this book more... Read more

Published on June 19, 2009 by Rick

5.0 out of 5 stars JavaScript & DHTML Cookbook
I can honestly say this is the best JavaScript reference I have ever read. The writing style is both engaging and informative. Read more

Published on April 20, 2009 by Michael Giroux

5.0 out of 5 stars Good JS book
Like most of the cookbooks, this is perfect for a new JS programmer - like me.

Published on March 17, 2009 by A. Swanson

2.0 out of 5 stars Not what I thought it would be.
The book doesn't go in-depth in it's explainations. It is written more for the seasoned script writer and not the beginner. Read more

Published on July 13, 2008 by Russell R. Eacott

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book to Learn The Basics
Like most web developers, I typically will reach for one of the many JS libraries when it comes time to add client-side enhancements to my web applications. Read more

Published on June 10, 2008 by T. Crawford

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
I really like this book. The format of each technique demonstrated is

Problem- Solution- Discussion

The nice thing is that you can get a quick... Read more

Published on April 27, 2008 by C. M. Hughes

4.0 out of 5 stars This is a good book for general purposes
I wouldn't buy this book if you are going for aesthetics for you website. I wouldn't buy it if you are a heavy programmer either. Read more

Published on April 23, 2008 by Charles J. Padera

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent reference
I still have the first edition of this book but other than perhaps missing the chapters on ajax it's not outdated at all. Read more

Published on February 14, 2008 by Peter Hulst

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Inside This Book (learn more)
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
draggable element, validation failure, framesetting document, nonscriptable browsers, anime object, field validation functions, precaching images, string index values, var coords, document node tree, event handler assignments, dragged element, function coworker, onload event handler, modal dialog window, coworker object, opener property, consectetaur adipisicing elit, positioned element, sibling frame, menu bar images, onsubmit event handler, onunload event handler, style sheet rules, iframe element

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Internet Explorer, Discussion Example, Page Navigation Techniques, Netscape Navigator, Managing Events, Elements Example, Creating Drop-Down Navigation Menus, Creating Collapsible, Managing Style Sheets, Creating Expandable Menus, Document Fragment, Dynamic Content Applications Example, The Definitive Reference, Solution Use, Managing Browser Windows Example, Flow Control, North America, Assigning Style Sheet Rules, New York, Cross-Browser Modal Dialog Window, Browser Feature Detection, Host Country, Managing Multiple Frames, Solution Create, Hide Navbar