Introduction

JavaScript, often abbreviated as JS, is a programming language designed to allow the programmer to build interactive web applications. JavaScript is one of the backbones of web development, along with HTML and CSS. Nearly every major website, including Google, Facebook, and Netflix, make heavy use of JavaScript. JS was first created for the Netscape web browser in 1995. The first prototype of JavaScript was written by Brendan Eich in just a mere 10 days. Since its creation, JavaScript has become one of the most common programming languages in use today.

In this book, we will deepen your understanding of the core of JavaScript and its advanced functionality. We will cover the new features that have been introduced in the ECMAScript standard, JavaScript's asynchronous programming nature, DOM and HTML event interaction with JavaScript, JavaScript's functional programming paradigms, testing JavaScript code, and the JavaScript development environment. With the knowledge gained from this book, you will be ready to begin using JavaScript in a professional setting to build powerful web applications.