DHTML Utopia: Modern Web Design Using JavaScript & DOM

November 29th, 2005

Ok. Let me get this off my chest. I love learning! Yes, I do. But DHTML Utopia: Modern Web Design with JavaScript and DOM was a stretch for me as a relative newcomer to JavaScript - beyond what I expected.

In contrast, I’m quite comfortable with basic server side scripting. It’s simple. You write a function or object, create variables and the pages are put together and served up on a silver platter. But client-side (browser based) scripting with JavaScript and DOM? Well, this is another matter altogether. Using JavaScript and the DOM is a bit like absorbing utopian literature; it is full of potential but hard to apply to the grind of everyday life.

The pull of a coding utopia eventually overcame my skepticism. What I found has forever changed the way I think about JavaScript. Thanks to Stuart Langrange, I am now happy to use JavaScript as an interaction layer or improvement to my Web sites rather than embedding it in my HTML code.

DHTML Utopia’s strong points include:

Not for dummies! Unrelenting intellectual and professional rigor. No shortcuts taken. No easy way out or dumbing down of concepts.
Intense practical application (unlike any other utopian literature I’ve read)
A brief introduction to an array of server side scripting option that use DOM and AJAX
The code examples I worked with were flawless. Obviously an excellent team of technical editors was involved.

DHTML Utopia’s weak, points include:

None to speak of. But while I’m speaking …
Not for dummies!
Many of the examples left me wishing for more depth. I want more of the same!
The concept of using JavaScript to read and manipulate a document via DOM is practical, but at first it is hard to grasp and apply to one’s own projects.
It appears that this method of coding does not comply with XHTML. As an XHTML coder, I had to work with XHTML 1.0 Transitional in order to take advantage of the techniques Stuart Lagrange introduces.
In addition, when I used the DOM and JavaScript on a client’s Web site, I noticed that longer pages resulted in a somewhat sluggish response when viewed in Internet Explorer. I am unclear as to what causes this and will keep researching until I find out. It is directly proportional to the number of DOM nodes in my documents. Any discussion of this issue would be helpful to me.
Oh! I almost forgot the most important thing. They wouldn’t send me a free copy for review. The NERVE!

Topics covered include:

An introduction to using HTML and the Document Object Model (DOM)
Working with various browsers
Animation
Forms and Validation
Animated Menus
Remote Scripting & Communicating with the Server (AJAX)
DOM Alternatives: XPath

Who is this book’s audience?

I recommend this book to anyone with a strong conceptual understanding of JavaScript and a hunger for clean Web pages. Especially if they want to keep their clients’ Web pages uncluttered with noise that may impede search engines as they index and rank pages. At last, a way of adding interactivity without destroying a Web site’s accessibility has begun to mature!

Title: DHTML Utopia: Modern Web Design Using JavaScript & DOM
Author: Stuart Langrange
Publisher: Sitepoint
ISBN: 0957921896
Date: May 2005
Format: Paperback
Pages: 318
Cover Price: USD: $39.95 CDN: $55.95 UK: unknown