Summary

In this chapter, we looked at a different avatar of JavaScript—that of a server-side framework in the form of Node.js.

Node offers an asynchronous evented-model to program scalable and high-performance server applications in JavaScript. We ped deep into some core concepts on Node, such as an event loop, callbacks, modules, and timers. Understanding them is critical to write good Node code. We also discussed several techniques to structure Node code and callbacks in a better way.

With this, we reach the conclusion of our exploration of a brilliant programming language. JavaScript has been instrumental in the evolution of the World Wide Web because of its sheer versatility. The language continues to expand its horizons and improves with each new iteration.

We started our journey with understanding the building blocks of the grammar and syntax of the language. We grasped the fundamental ideas of closures and the functional behavior of JavaScript. These concepts are so essential that most of the JavaScript patterns are based on them. We looked at how we can utilize these patterns to write better code with JavaScript. We studied how JavaScript can operate on a DOM and how to use jQuery to manipulate the DOM effectively. Finally, we looked at the server-side avatar of JavaScript in Node.js.

This module should have enabled you to think differently when you start programming in JavaScript. Not only will you think about common patterns when you code, but also appreciate and use newer language features by ES6.