JavaScript is an object-based scripting language used to add interactivity to web pages in browsers by manipulating HTML objects and handling events. It was originally developed at Netscape to enable dynamic and interactive pages but is now supported by all major browsers. The document provides an overview of JavaScript objects, events, and how to get started using it with HTML.
In this document
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Overview of JavaScript as an object-based language, its origins, and inclusion in browsers.
Discusses JavaScript's consistent execution across browsers and its distinction from Java.
Lists various applications of JavaScript, such as animations, form validation, and web navigation.
Step-by-step guide to creating HTML files that incorporate JavaScript, including script tags.
Discussion on script rendering in older browsers and how to use comments in JavaScript.
Explains the object hierarchy, detailing objects like window, document, and their properties.
Shows examples of JavaScript methods for navigating and manipulating browser history and properties.
Focus on the object model and how objects possess properties and methods in JavaScript.
Describes various event handlers in JavaScript, including onClick, onBlur, and onSubmit. Detailed examples of using specific events like onFocus, onLoad, onSelect, and onUnload.
JavaScript - aBrief Introduction
IMI PRINCE
www.newsvelley.blogspot.com
2.
What is JavaScript
•Object based (not object oriented)
programming language
– very limited object creation
– a set of pre-defined objects associated with
• HTML document structure
– many HTML tags constitute JS Objects
• Browser functionality
– provides a limited API to Browser functionality
3.
Where did itcome from
• Originally called LiveScript at Netscape
– started out to be a server side scripting language for
providing database connectivity and dynamic HTML
generation on Netscape Web Servers
– Netscape decided it would be a good thing for their
browsers and servers to speak the same language so it
got included in Navigator
– Netscape in alliance w/Sun jointly announced the
language and its new name Java Script
– Because of rapid acceptance by the web community
Microsoft forced to include in IE Browser
4.
Browser compatibility
• Forthe most part Java Script runs the same
way in all popular browsers
• There are many areas where there are slight
differences in how Java Script will run
• there will be a separate set of slides
addressing these differences.
5.
JavaScript…Java ?
• Thereis no relationship other than the fact
that Java and JavaScript resemble each
other (and C++) syntactically
• JavaScript is pretty much the de-facto
standard for client-side scripting (Internet
Explorer also provides VBScript & JScript)
• In Netscape browsers there is an API that
allows JavaScript and Java applets
embedded in the same page to converse
6.
What can itbe used for
• Some pretty amazing things….
– Text animation
– graphic animation
– simple browser based application
– HTML forms submission
– client-side forms data validation (relieving the
server of this task)
– web site navigation
7.
What do Ineed to get started
• A web browser
– Netscape Navigator 4.x or later
– MS Internet Explorer 3.x or later
• A text Editor
– Wordpad/Notepad
– Vi, Emacs
8.
Process
• Open your text editor
• create a file containing html and Javascript
• save as text file with file type .htm or .html
• open your browser
• click on file, open file
– locate the file you just created
• open file in browser
9.
Putting JavaScript intoyour HTML
• in an external file
– collect commonly used functions together into
external function libraries on the server
• added benefit of privacy from curious users
• in-line with your HTML
• as an expression for an HTML tag attribute
• within some HTML tags as Event Handlers
10.
<SCRIPT>…</SCRIPT>
• <SCRIPT language=….src=……></SCRIPT>
• The <SCRIPT> tag indicates to the browser the
beginning of an embedded script; </SCRIPT>
indicates the end of an embedded script.
• the “language” attribute indicates the script
processor to be used
• the “src” attribute indicates the URL of a file on
the server containing the script to be embedded
11.
Scripts
• Since scriptsare placed in line with with
HTML older browsers will attempt to
render them as text.
• To preclude this hide them in side of an
HTML comment . <!-- -->
• for JavaScript comments use // or /* */
12.
<SCRIPT>
• <SCRIPT LANGUAGE=“JavaScript”>
• <!-- start hiding code from old browsers>
• Script
• Code
• Goes
• Here
• // Stop Hiding code -->
• </SCRIPT>
13.
Object Hierarchy
window
history document location link
link anchor layer form applet image area
text radio button fileUpload select
textarea checkbox reset option
password submit
14.
Objects
• window -the current browser window
• window.history - the Netscape history list
• window.document - the html document currently in the
browser client area
• window.location - the browser location field
• window.toolbar - the browser toolbar
• window.document.link - an array containing all of the
links in the document
• window.document.anchor - an array of all the anchor
points in the document
15.
Objects (more…)
• Window.document.layer - a named document layer
• window.document.applet - a named java applet area
• window.document.image- a named image tag
• window.document.area - a named area
• window.document.form - a named form or the default form
• ect, ect
16.
A few examples...
•window.location = “http://www.yahoo.com”
– will take you to the specified URL (like a goto)
• window.history.back()
– back() is a method on history
– will be like clicking the back button in Nav 3
– in Nav 4 will take you back to prev window
• window.history.goto(1)
– takes you back to first URL in history array
17.
The Object Model
•It is very important to understand the object
model
• each object has its own properties, some of
which are read only some of which you can
set directly by assignment (as location)
• each object also has a set of behaviors
called methods
18.
Object Model
= Text Object
HTML text tag
B l u r ()
defaultValue
form
name Select()
type
focus() value Red - gettable and settable
handleEvent
19.
Object Event Handlers
•Most objects respond to asynchronous, user generated
events through predefined event handlers that handle the
event and transfer control to a user written event handling
function
• Each object has particular events that they will respond to
• the way you specify an event handler is by adding an
additional attribute to the HTML tag that specifies the
particular handler
• <input name=bt1 type=button value=ok onClick=“acb();”>
onAbort
• Activated whena user aborts the loading of
an image
<img name=ball src=images/ball.gif onAbort=“alert(‘You missed a nice picture’)”>
22.
onBlur
• Used withframe, select, text, textarea and
window objects
• invoked when an object loses the focus
• use with select, text and textarea for data
validation
23.
onChange
• Used withselect, text and textarea objects
• use instead of onBlur to validate only if a
value has changed
<form>
Color: <select onChange=“processSelection()”>
<option value=“R”>Red
<option value=“G”>Green
<option value=“B”>Blue
</select>
</form>
24.
onClick
• Used withbutton, checkbox,link, radio,
reset, and submit objects.
<input type=button name=btn1 value=“Click Me” onClick=“alert(‘button was clicked’;” >
25.
onError
• Used withimage and window objects to
invoke a handler if an error occurs while an
image or window is loading.
• Setting window.onerror = null will prevent
users from seeing JavaScript generated
errors
26.
onFocus
• Usedwith frame, select, text, textarea and
window objects.
• Just the opposite of onBlur; i.e. invoked
when the object gets focus.
<body bgcolor=“lightgrey” onBlur=“document.bgColor=‘black’ onFocus=“document.bgColor=‘white’” >
27.
onLoad
• Used withwindow, frame and image objects (use
with <body ….><frameset ….> and <img ...>)
<img name=spinball src=images/spinball.gig onLoad=“startAnimation(this)”>
28.
onMouseOut and onMouseOver
•Used with area and link objects
• user moves mouse off of an area or link
<map name=flower>
<area name=top coords=“0,0,200,300 href=“javascript:displayMessage()”
onMouseOver=“self.status=‘when you see this message click your left mouse button’ ;
return true”
onMouseOut=“self.status = ‘’ ; return true”>
29.
onReset
• Used withform objects
<form onReset=“alert(‘the form has been reset’)” >
30.
onSelect
• Used withtext and textarea objects
• run some JavaScript whenever a user
selects a piece of text in a text or textarea
object
<input type=text name=line onSelect=“showHelp()” >
31.
onSubmit
• Use withform objects to run a handler
whenever a form has been submitted.
• Useful to validate all fields prior to actual
submission
32.
onUnload
• Just likeonLoad but the handler is run
when the window/frame is exited
<body onUnload=“cleanup()” >