JavaScript is a powerful scripting language that can be embedded directly in HTML. It allows you to create dynamic, interactive Web-based applications that run completely within a Web browser; you don’t have to do any server-side programming, like writing CGI scripts.

JavaScript is a simpler language than Java. It can be embedded directly in Web pages without compilation, so it is more flexible and easier to use for simple tasks like animation. However, although you can write reasonably robust and complete Web applications using JavaScript alone, JavaScript is not a substitute for Java. In fact, JavaScript is a good client-side complement to Java; using the two together allows you to create more complex applications than are possible with JavaScript alone.

java script: The Definitive Guide provides a thorough description of the core JavaScript language and its client-side framework, complete with sophisticated examples that show you how to handle common tasks, like validating form data and working with cookies. The book also contains a definitive, in-depth reference section that covers every core and client-side JavaScript function, object, method, property, constructor, and event handler. This book is an indispensable reference for all JavaScript programmers, regardless of experience level.

This third edition of java script: The Definitive Guide describes the latest version of the language, JavaScript 1.2, as supported by Netscape Navigator 4 and Internet Explorer 4. The book also covers JavaScript 1.1, which is the first industry-standard version known as ECMAScript. The new features of JavaScript 1.2, which are likely to be embodied in a later ECMAScript standard release, are clearly indicated, so that you can use them as appropriate in your scripts.

In typical O’Reilly & Associates fashion, this book documents every nuance of the JavaScript 1.1 language specification. It may appear dry on the surface (many pages have the spare style of UNIX online documentation), but this is the book you’ll pull off your shelf when you want to know which method returns the primitive value of an object. Flanagan’s book comes out ahead of its competitors in a few other areas, too. JavaScript features a useful discussion of the limited JavaScript support found in Microsoft Internet Explorer and provides excellent documentation of LiveConnect, the software that allows JavaScript to communicate with Java applets. It also offers a taste of what’s in store for the just-released JavaScript 1.2.

With a relatively small number of examples and no CD-ROM, this guide is more of a reference than a tutorial. It will serve experienced JavaScript programmers far better than those who are just starting out with the language.

Provides a rapid and thorough exposition of the JavaScript programming language, as well as an in-depth reference section covering each JavaScript function, object, method, and even handler. Experienced programmers will quickly find the information they need to start writing JavaScript programs.

Learning JavaScript is fast becoming a prerequisite to developing powerful Websites... this is a great resource.

This is one of the best reference books on JavaScript you can find.

User-friendly guide for anyone seeking to utilize what JavaScript has to offer.

" A must have for any web professional."

"For serious web designers who must be capable of controlling every aspect of the web page, this guide is indispensable."

Flanagan delivers a book that more than measures up to its predecessor.

A pleasure to use.

If you do JavaScripting and do not own this book; I’d like to know how you do it. I think it would be painful without it.

JavaScript is a powerful, object-based scripting language; JavaScript programs can be embedded directly in HTML web pages. When combined with the Document Object Model (DOM) defined by a web browser, JavaScript allows you to create Dynamic HTML content and interactive client-side web applications. JavaScript syntax is based on the popular programming languages C, C++, and Java, which makes it familiar and easy to learn for experienced programmers. At the same time, JavaScript is an interpreted scripting language, providing a flexible, forgiving programming environment in which new programmers can learn.

java script: The Definitive Guide provides a thorough description of the core JavaScript language and both the legacy and standard DOMs implemented in web browsers. The book includes sophisticated examples that show you how to handle common tasks, like validating form data, working with cookies, and creating portable DHTML animations. The book also contains detailed reference sections that cover the core JavaScript API, the legacy client-side API, and the W3C standard DOM API, documenting every JavaScript object, method, property, constructor, constant, function, and event handler in those APIs.

This fourth edition of the bestselling JavaScript book has been carefully updated to cover JavaScript 1.5 (ECMAScript version 3). The book also provides complete coverage of the W3C DOM standard (Level 1 and Level 2), while retaining material on the legacy Level 0 DOM for backward compatibility.

java script: The Definitive Guide is a complete programmer’s guide and reference manual for JavaScript. It is particularly useful for developers working with the latest standards-compliant web browsers, like Internet Explorer 6, Netscape 6, and Mozilla. HTML authors can learn how to use JavaScript to build dynamic web pages. Experienced programmers can quickly find the information they need to start writing sophisticated JavaScript programs. This book is an indispensable reference for all JavaScript programmers, regardless of experience level.

This Fifth Edition is completely revised and expanded to cover JavaScript as it is used in today’s Web 2.0 applications. This book is both an example-driven programmer’s guide and a keep-on-your-desk reference, with new chapters that explain everything you need to know to get the most out of JavaScript, including: Scripted HTTP and Ajax XML processing Client-side graphics using the canvas tag Namespaces in JavaScript--essential when writing complex programs Classes, closures, persistence, Flash, and JavaScript embedded in Java applications

Part I explains the core JavaScript language in detail. If you are new to JavaScript, it will teach you the language. If you are already a JavaScript programmer, Part I will sharpen your skills and deepen your understanding of the language.

Part II explains the scripting environment provided by web browsers, with a focus on DOM scripting with unobtrusive JavaScript. The broad and deep coverage of client-side JavaScript is illustrated with many sophisticated examples that demonstrate how to: Generate a table of contents for an HTML document Display DHTML animations Automate form validation Draw dynamic pie charts Make HTML elements draggable Define keyboard shortcuts for web applications Create Ajax-enabled tool tips Use XPath and XSLT on XML documents loaded with Ajax And much more

Part III is a complete reference for core JavaScript. It documents every class, object, constructor, method, function, property, and constant defined by JavaScript 1.5 and ECMAScript Version 3.

Part IV is a reference for client-side JavaScript, covering legacy web browser APIs, the standard Level 2 DOM API, and emerging standards such as the XMLHttpRequestobject and the canvas tag.

More than 300,000 JavaScript programmers around the world have made this their indispensable reference book for building JavaScript applications.

""A must-have reference for expert JavaScript programmers...well-organized and detailed."" -- Brendan Eich, creator of JavaScript

This Fifth Edition is completely revised and expanded to cover JavaScript as it is used in today’s Web 2.0 applications. This book is both an example-driven programmer’s guide and a keep-on-your-desk reference, with new chapters that explain everything you need to know to get the most out of JavaScript, including:

• Scripted HTTP and Ajax
• XML processing
• Client-side graphics using the < canvas > tag
• Namespaces in JavaScript--essential when writing complex programs
• Classes, closures, persistence, Flash, and JavaScript embedded in Java applications

Part I explains the core JavaScript language in detail. If you are new to JavaScript, it will teach you the language. If you are already a JavaScript programmer, Part I will sharpen your skills and deepen your understanding of the language.

Part II explains the scripting environment provided by web browsers, with a focus on DOM scripting with unobtrusive JavaScript. The broad and deep coverage of client-side JavaScript is illustrated with many sophisticated examples that demonstrate how to:

• Generate a table of contents for an HTML document
• Display DHTML animations
• Automate form validation
• Draw dynamic pie charts
• Make HTML elements draggable
• Define keyboard shortcuts for web applications
• Create Ajax-enabled tool tips
• Use XPath and XSLT on XML documents loaded with Ajax
• And much more

Part III is a complete reference for core JavaScript. It documents every class, object, constructor, method, function, property, and constant defined by JavaScript 1.5 and ECMAScript version 3.

Part IV is a reference for client-side JavaScript, covering legacy web browser APIs, the standard Level 2 DOM API, and emerging standards such as the XMLHttpRequest object and the tag.

More than 300,000 JavaScript programmers around the world have made this their indispensable reference book for building JavaScript applications.

"A must-have reference for expert JavaScript programmers...well-organized and detailed."
-- Brendan Eich, creator of JavaScript

Since the earliest days of Internet scripting, Web developers have considered java script: The Definitive Guide an essential resource. David Flanagan’s approach, which combines tutorials and examples with easy-to-use syntax guides and object references, suits the typical programmer’s requirements nicely. The brand-new fourth edition of Flanagan’s "Rhino Book" includes coverage of JavaScript 1.5, JScript 5.5, ECMAScript 3 and the Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 standard from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Interestingly, the author has shifted away from specifying--as he did in earlier editions--what browsers support each bit of the language. Rather than say Netscape 3.0 supports the Image object while Internet Explorer 3.0 does not, he specifies that JavaScript 1.1 and JScript 3.0 support Image. More usefully, he specifies the contents of independent standards such as ECMAScript, which encourages scripters to write applications for these standards and browser vendors to support them. As Flanagan says, JavaScript and its related subjects are very complex in their pure forms. It’s impossible to keep track of the differences among half a dozen vendors’ generally similar implementations. Nonetheless, a lot of examples make reference to specific browsers’ capabilities.

Though he does not cover server-side APIs, Flanagan has chosen to separate coverage of core JavaScript (all the keywords, general syntax and utility objects such as Array) from coverage of client-side JavaScript, which includes objects, such as History and Event, that have to do with Web browsers and users’ interactions with them. This approach makes this book useful to people using JavaScript for applications other than Web pages. By the way, the other classic JavaScript text--Danny Goodman’s JavaScript Bible--isn’t as current as this book, but it’s still a fantastic (and perhaps somewhat more novice-friendly) guide to the JavaScript language and its capabilities. --David Wall

Topics covered: the JavaScript language (version 1.0 through version 1.5) and its relatives, JScript and ECMAScript, as well as the W3C DOM standards they’re often used to manipulate. Tutorial sections show how to program in JavaScript, while reference sections summarise syntax and options while providing copious code examples.

Provides a rapid and thorough exposition of the JavaScript programming language, as well as an in-depth reference section covering each JavaScript function, object, method, and even handler. Experienced programmers will quickly find the information they need to start writing JavaScript programs.

The indispensable reference for JavaScript programmers since 1996, java script: The Definitive Guide, Fifth Edition is completely revised and expanded to cover JavaScript as it is used in today’s Web 2.0 applications.

Two brand-new chapters explain the cornerstones of the Ajax application architecture: scripted HTTP and XML processing. Another new chapter shows how to draw client-side graphics using the tag and other cutting-edge technologies. Yet another new chapter explains the use of namespaces in java script: essential when writing complex programs, rather than simple scripts. This edition also includes new material on classes, closures, persistence, Flash, and JavaScript embedded in Java applications.

As always, java script: The Definitive Guide is both a complete programmer’s guide and a keep-on-your-desk reference manual. Part I explains the core JavaScript language in intimate detail. If you are new to JavaScript, it will teach you the language. If you are already a JavaScript programmer, Part I will sharpen your skills and deepen your understanding of the language.

Part II explains the scripting environment provided by web browsers, with a focus on DOM scripting with unobtrusive JavaScript. The broad and deep coverage of client-side JavaScript is illustrated with many sophisticated examples that demonstrate how to:

• Generate a table of contents for an HTML document
• Display DHTML animations
• Automate form validation
• Draw dynamic pie charts
• Make HTML elements draggable
• Define keyboard shortcuts for web applications
• Create Ajax-enabled tooltips
• Use XPath and XSLT on XML documents loaded with Ajax
• And much more

Part III is a complete reference for core JavaScript. It documents every class, object, constructor, method, function, property, and constant defined by JavaScript 1.5 and ECMAScript version 3. Part IV is a reference for client-side JavaScript, covering legacy web browser APIs, the standard Level 2 DOM API, and emerging standards such as the XMLHttpRequest object and the tag.

"A must-have reference for expert JavaScript programmers...Well-organized and detailed"
--Brendan Eich, Creator of JavaScript

Comprehensive, a little boring
This book is downright comprehensive and thoroughly deserves its "definitive guide" title.

But, the example scripts the author gives are long and deadly boring, which is why I won’t give it five stars.

To "get" JavaScript, you need shorter scripts which are easier to learn from.

My recommendation is to use this book in conjunction with the w3schools website.

Almost Too Thorough. Not the best Choice for Beginners/Creatives
This is the book all the JS rockstars out there tend to recommend to people. I don’t think it’s for everybody personally. It’s very thorough and explains JS and its various incarnations at a high level of intricacy that I wouldn’t recommend to beginners who are easily distracted (i.e. more heavily creative-brained designers). I’m fairly evenly brained myself and I occasionally found myself zombie-reading as exciting as some of the specifics are too me.

On the other hand, if you want to know just about everything there is to possibly know about JS, this is the book. And that’s worth five stars to me.

A good place to get a start with JS if you’ve never programmed is a decent class or self-teaching the basics online. Then I recommend Jeremy Keith’s DOM scripting. Then the Complete Reference. Then this bruiser when you really want get in deep.

Easy read and understanding
Great book, easy read, well formated and very instrutive. You will find everything that you need about JavaScript (covering standard ECMAScript v3). From the basics to the most advance about the language.

begginers
I just read first few chapters of this book. Good news is that the material is expressed in an accessible manner. However if you have an interest in programming languages and trying to read this book as JavaScript language tutorial or reference things like "lambda functions" (should be "lambda expressions"), or discussions about how (in authors view) JS interreter "inserts semicolums" (it does not. whitespace is used as token separator while parsing) make it look pretty bad.

Awesome Book -
As a nuts and bolts kind of guy, I appreciate the layout and information available in the newest revision of this Book on JavaScript. If you’re looking for a tutorial, this isn’t it, but if you’re looking for a reference manual, this is for you. Very cool book.

Good introductory and reference book
This book could easily serve as an introductory text to JavaScript. It offers enough depth for beginning JavaScript. Unfortunately, it does not delve enough into things like closure, which I believe is a very important language features. Furthermore, after the first or second reading, this book can handily serve as a reference book since part 3 and 4 of this book is reference to the classes, methods, and functions that are available in most JavaScript implementation.

The Best JavaScript Book
This book not only assists first-time JavaScript programmers, but is an excellent reference for the more experienced developers. The examples are first-rate, and the reference sections are more comprehensive than any I’ve seen for this language. A MUST if you are a serious JavaScript professional.

A work of art
I feel that this book is really a work of art. Besides agreeing with the last reviewer that it is not fair to consider this as a book for beginners and then judge it against that standard, I’d say that even though it is not for beginners, it does not make unnecessary arcane references, etc. It is very readable, at least for someone who’s had a little experience working with JavaScript. I’d say it is not even a requirement to know object oriented principles (except for those sections perhaps). The author has not only made intelligible so many of the quirks of JavaScript, but provides code which is easy to follow yet extremely useful.

As far as examples, while for JavaScript fans, it might have been nice that the book expanded into 2000 pages instead of almost 1000 that it is now, the author does, I feel, what is necessary to both explain and demonstrate the concepts, and most often, does so by creating VERY useful utility functions and "classes". Just for the utility functions alone, the book would be worth it, really. There are only a very few places where the author suggests to look elsewhere, and besides my not minding doing so given how the book already saved me so much time, the cited references would have taken up unnecessary space if the author were to include them (and they definitely weren’t essential).

The book is not outdated! Unlike other books, most of the book is rarely tied down to code that can become outdated as browsers change (like the changeable but helpful quirksmode.org ). Of course, as a big fan of this book, I hope the author will be persuaded to keep making new editions (and make a hardcover!). If you really want to learn the language, this is THE book.

This book was no doubt an immense labor of love--you can feel the author is human, actually teaching, and is not trying to show off with terminology while he still does explain a whole lot of necessary terms, etc., comments the code well, etc. As with art (not the strange modern variety either), I am flabbergasted some people cannot appreciate its beauty. In a complex JavaScript application, I am building, I am using no less than 7 of the utility classes he provided in the book.

For those studying JavaScript in depth / reading this book, I’d recommend one supplement to the book: the informative articles at http://javascript.crockford.com/ (and no doubt that author’s book too). The articles on private members and classical vs. prototypal inheritance are one area I felt for which additional examples and use of terminology was helpful, and allowed me to appreciate and understand the chapter in the book on classes more fully (and utilize the approaches in its utility classes as well).

The Best book of reference for a beginner
I bought this book after the helpful reviews found on amazon. This book is must have for reference, I’ve been using this for the past one month and its been great reference for me, a beginner.

Good reference, not suited as introduction
This work is great as reference once one has acquired some skill, however it is not a good introduction for starters.

Great guide and reference
This book is perfect for anyone working on Web sites and uses JavaScript. From learning JavaScript to finding "recipes" on doing work, this book has it all. I cut a project from 10 hours to 1 hour with this book’s help.

This one is OK
Its pretty lengthy and Javascript has developed some since this came out so I don’t know how usefull it still is.

Javascript All in one Book.
If you want to master Javascript and read just one book, then this must be the book you want to buy. Covers A-Z, detailed. If you are beginning on AJAX then this book is must read if you are Javascript beginner. 5 Stars.

Maturity of the language itself
When I first started programming javascript that lasted only a week or so (this was around 2000), the trouble I had with it was with the loose typing and the generality of the language. After reading the core portion of this book, I got to see the advantages and power of what I had problems with. It only took me 12 hours to go from literally clueless to semi-proficient. It also helped that I went through a whole semester of software design in C++. Another subtle part of the book that you do not need to have a semester of software design to learn the language, the author does well to explain the material well. If you are new to javascript, I’d probably get another book to go along with this.

Excellent book, complete and well written.
Authoritative, very well written, very well structured, complete, a pleasure to read.
The intricacies of Javascirpt are very well explained, it might not be an easy read for the average script kiddie but if you want a book that thoroughly describes the language and its browser integration, events, dom, css handling ... look no further.

Excellent reference
Excellent reference book -- well organized, especially the DOM reference section, and easy to understand. Clear explanation in the introductory chapters.

The Definitive Guide, Seriously
This book will take you from zero to hero! I read it cover-to-cover twice after having a year or so of javascript experience, and each time I learned a great deal. The reference section is indispensable too.

If you want to learn the language inside and out and start playing with the big boys, get this book.

An Excellent Cohesive Reference, Truly the Definitive Guide to JavaScript As We Know It.
I rarely review technical books since they typically live short lives - their usefulness spans about one project, after that they’re another monitor stand (old news). However, this book is a gem, a fantastic reference. It is truly the definitive guide to JavaScript as we know it today, it covers JavaScript from A-Z, and is permeated with good advice and best practices - for good reasons too, it’s in its 5th Edition, has been recognized as one of the best books in JavaScript and has been reviewed and edited by some of the JavaScript greats: Peter-Paul Koch (Author of ppk on JavaScript and QuirksMode.org), and Douglas Crockford (Yahoo!) to name a few. I highly recommend this book, it’s an excellent book with great advice that you can really count on.

This is the Definitive Guide
We are in 2008 and this is the Rhino book 5th ed. Try to google the terms "javascript variable name", you’ll have a bunch of articles and tutorials giving you the javascript naming rules. Count how many articles you hit before one of them mentions that the ($) dollar sign is a perfectly valid character in identifiers (it’s been so since javascript 1.1). This Rhino book already mentioned this back in 1998 when in its 3rd edition and possibly in previous editions. It is not to say that this is a life changing information, it’s simply to illustrate a point. By knowing what is or isn’t possible with the language you can put it to better use. You should own this book, even if you want to buy other JS books or even if you’ve read tutorials around the web and you think you know what you’re doing. This book clearly details the language and its intricacies. If you’re a programmer, you’ll appreciate that you actually understand how javascript works. The bugs will seem a lot less obscure and some esoteric constructs found in various scripts and frameworks will look less like voodoo. You will certainly need other Javascript books that deal more with advanced practice, architecture and development techniques, but you need a solid foundation to build all that knowledge on.

This is the Definitive Guide
We are in 2008 and this is the Rhino book 5th ed. Try to google the terms "javascript variable names", you’ll have a bunch of articles and tutorials giving you the javascript naming rules. Count how many articles you hit before one of them mentions that the ($) dollar sign is a perfectly valid character in identifiers (it’s been so since javascript 1.1). This Rhino book already mentioned this back in 1998 when in its 3rd edition and possibly in previous editions. It is not to say that this is a life changing information, it’s simply to illustrate a point. By knowing what is or isn’t possible with the language you can put it to better use. You should own this book, even if you want to buy other JS books or even if you’ve read tutorials around the web and you think you know what you’re doing. This book clearly details the language and its intricacies. If you’re a programmer, you’ll appreciate that you actually understand how javascript works. The bugs will seem a lot less obscure and some esoteric constructs found in various scripts and frameworks will look less like voodoo. You will certainly need other Javascript books that deal more with advanced practice, architecture and development techniques, but you need a solid foundation to build all that knowledge on.

Not very newbie friendly
I couldn’t understand what the author wanted me to understand! I’ve learned PHP CSS XHTML and I wanted to learn the basics of javascript and this book didn’t quite deliver.

Good information, horrible index
Good information. Lowering from 4 stars to 3 because of its bad index. When I try to look something up, I’m usually taken to a page that mentions the term in passing - it takes a few tries before I find *the* page describing the term. Plus, it doesn’t include the page number of the term in the API-reference appendix.

Obviously a computer-generated index - get a professional indexer next time! A good index would make this book more useful.

Great reference book for JavaScript!
This book is a great reference book for JavaScript. I refer to it a lot for functions and the chapter on XML. As an AJAX developer, I highly recommend the Prototype / Scriptaculous "bungee" book from Pragmatic Programmers to complement this book.

Comprehensive book explains Javascript realities
I’m still getting into this book, but so far it has done a good job of explaining what is a new technology to me. I have some web development experience and this book hits me at the right level.

Good textbook, great reference
This refers to the 5th edition.

Ten years ago, JavaScript support was so different among various web browsers, I gave up trying to do any logical processing in JavaScript, and went into server-side programming.

Today, you still have to do a select few things two or three times in JavaScript to get them to work in all web browsers. But with much better standardization across browsers -- including broad support for Ajax, or remote scripting -- it’s become worthwhile again to spend time on JavaScript development.

So, I took an online JavaScript class at the local community college. I bought this book as my reading text.

This "bible" of JavaScript skimps at times on simple examples, but provides several lengthy general-purpose code samples that show how to abstract out the client-specific or case-specific handling from an underlying set of routines.

Only the first part of this book is instructional. Then, there is the wonderful second half of the book, which is all reference. Divided into the core language reference and the client-side JavaScript reference, it’s an essential quick lookup tool.

If you are new to JavaScript or (like me) brushing up on it after a long time away, choose this book as your in-depth background information and your ongoing reference text. Choose something like Dori Smith’s JavaScript and Ajax for the Web, Sixth Edition (Visual QuickStart Guide) for your smaller, quick-start examples to play with.

Unfortunately, as long as browsers don’t all support all the same JavaScript and CSS, there is still too much tedious hacking needed to provide a useful interface on the client side. Neither this book nor any other will get you past that little problem.

Excellent guidebook
Well written and concise language description. Especially good for programmers who want to learn the language.

a truly definitive guide
I knew next to nothing about javascript when I bought this book.

The book is divided into two sections, a theoretical discussion and a reference section. I read the theoretical section thoroughly twice and haven’t looked back, and I am now generally able to achieve whatever I wish in javascript.

I have read some of the negative reviews, and while I can understand reviews that say the book may not be as practical as it could be or that the author is not sufficiently direct, I disagree in that the author is providing a very comprehensive description including the nuances of Javascript.

The author is in command of the topic, provides solid examples, and alerts you the salient points.

I have several other books on javascript, but it is to this one that I return time and time again. The only thing that I am likely to criticize is the quality of the cover and binding... while it is still holding up.. my book is already looking tatty after a couple of months.

a truly definitive guide
I knew next to nothing about javascript when I bought this book. I am not a professional programmer.

After twice reading the theoretical section (the first half of the book) attentively, I was able to program some pretty interesting things with javascript. The book provided sufficient grounding for me to fly solo and use my imagination. The reference section has been valuable for this.

I have read some of the negative reviews, and while I can understand reviews that say this book could be more direct, practical and concise, I disagree with these accounts as I found the author provided a very comprehensive narrative description of javascript including its nuances.

The author is in command of the topic, he provides solid targeted examples, and alerts you the salient points in those examples. He is teacher.

I have several other javascript books, but I return to this one regularly. Finding that the others are too cookbook oriented and do not give a sufficient grounding to solve complex problems.

The only thing that worries me is the quality of the cover and binding... while holding up.. my book is already looking tatty after just a couple of months. It is an accessible javascript friend.

What more could you want?
I ordinarily like to say that JavaScript is the worst programming language known to man, but I just read "Programming in Lua" and don’t think I can continue in this practice. Nevertheless, it’s pretty bad. From its lack of anything remotely resembling an "include" statement to its closures-over-classes OOP implementation, there is nothing pleasant about working in JavaScript, and that’s why we need this book--to explain all the bizarre, counterintuitive nuances of scope resolution, interpreter variations and whatever all else the Netscape crackheads who forced this travesty on the world came up with.

Some people seem to think that any book that has the word "JavaScript" in its title should be packed full of code they can simply copy and paste until they have a bangin’ new social networking startup site that’s going to revolutionize the way we think about horrible photography, and those people are the ones who are disappointed with what they got. While AJAX and DOM scripting are discussed at considerable length here, this is not a book about making flashy, annoying websites.

So good I’ve worn it out.
I’ve had this book for a few years now and I think I’ve about worn it out and need to get another copy. I took it to work and my whole department borrows it on a weekly basis. It’s very handy and covers almost everything you would need to know (from a professional level) about javascript. It’s the "definitive guide" though, so you probably don’t want to read this one cover to cover unless you’re a robot. For anyone looking for a technical reference this is great.

Extensive reference on Javascript
O’Reilly books are always of high quality. At over 900 pages this book is a very complete reference. It has the functional organization characteristic of reference books. The answers are here but it’s not the place to go to learn Javascript from scratch. I find tutorials that are project oriented much more approachable for the beginner. Once you’ve used Javascript to solve some basic needs this reference will become a great tool.

rating: R
If you already program in C/C++, Java or Python, this is the right reference for making the transition to JavaScrript. It is thorough and is one of the few non-dreadful books on JS out there. Beware of an abundance of crappy junk in this area.....

Best Javascript Book
This is the best explanation I have seen about javascript that doesnt read like a document.
Remember that other reviewers who have complaints are complaining about the 4th edition of the book. 5th edition doesnt have the lackings of the previous edition. My only suggestion is that the concepts could have been explained using many more diagrams especially with regard to execution context.