[Opera-users] Java Script

[James Card]

6/28/2001 4:56:33 AM, Silviu Cojocaru <silviucj at yahoo.com> wrote:

>If you have been following this thread, in one of my posts I
>have ask for a link where I could find docs that are standard
>compliant. Well I never got it.
>
>I'll ask again, does somebody, anybody, know a link where
>standard compliant java script reference can be found ?

I am aware of only one "official" standard that is not associated with a 
particular browser. It is:
  Standard ECMA-262

  ECMAScript Language Specification
  http://www.ecma.ch/ecma1/stand/ecma-262.htm
Unfortunately, it is only complete if used in conjunction with an API 
that specifies the interaction between the scripting language and the 
containing document. You also need this:
  Document Object Model (DOM) Level 1 Specification
  http://www.w3.org/TR/1998/REC-DOM-Level-1-19981001/

Of course you could make the argument that Netscape "invented" 
JavaScript and therefore their implementation of it is the "official" 
one. In that case you would want:
  JavaScript Documentation
  http://developer.netscape.com/docs/manuals/javascript.html

Or you could say that since Internet Explorer is the dominant browser 
its version should be the reference standard. Here is Microsoft's 
version:
  Microsoft® JScript® 5.5, a powerful scripting language 
  targeted specifically at the Internet, is the first 
  scripting language to fully conform to ECMAScript, the 
  Web's only standard scripting language.
  http://msdn.microsoft.com/scripting/default.htm?/scripting/jscript/

There may be other folks out there providing tutorials and how-to guides 
purporting to enable one to write standards-compliant code. I haven't 
gone looking because I prefer to read the standards for myself. This 
much I am certain of: even writing code that is strictly standards-
compliant still requires a great deal of testing to ensure that it works 
properly everywhere it should. The only place I actually use any form of 
scripting is in controlled environments, where I know which browser(s) 
people will be using.

--
James Card  --  http://home.inreach.com/jdcard/
I think. I've lost my mind.