Notes (Theory)

Client Side Programming

  • Recall: HTML is good for developing static pages can specify text/image layout, links etc. web page looks the same each time it is accessed

  • In order to develop interactive or dynamic pages, must integrate a programming language

  • Programs are written in a separate programming language e.g. JavaScript, JScript, VBScript

  • Programs are embedded in the HTML of a web page, with tags to identify the program component e.g. <script type="text/javascript"> … </script>

  • Browser executes the program as it loads the page, combining the dynamic output of the program with the static content of HTML

# JavaScript: a bit of history

  • Originally called LiveScript and was introduced in the NetScape browser of 1995
  • The original vision was to create a full programming language for the web
  • Renamed JavaScript to indicate a marketing relationship with Sun’s Java language
  • The first scripting language to be supported by web browsers
  • The most popular web scripting language
  • Formalised in ECMAScript language standard

JavaScript: capabilities

  • JavaScript is
  • Interpreted
  • Has dynamic types
  • A multi-paradigm scripting language
    • object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles supported
  • It has higher order functions

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