Introduction

The World Wide Web began as a simple repository for information, but it has grown into much more—it entertains, teaches, advertises, and communicates. As the Web has evolved, the tools have also evolved. Simple markup tools such as HTML have been joined by true programming languages—including JavaScript.

Now don’t let the word “programming” scare you. For many, the term conjures up images of long nights staring at the screen, trying to remember which sequence of punctuation marks will produce the effect you need. (Don’t get me wrong—some of us enjoy that sort of thing.)

Although JavaScript is programming, it’s a very simple language. As a matter of fact, if you haven’t programmed before, it makes a great introduction to programming. ...

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