Javascript Libraries
As Web2 sites become more complex, web developers need to become more organised and efficient in their coding techniques. One area of particular growth is that of Javascript libraries. The Javascript language is very powerful for modifying DOM elements on a web page and providing the type of functionality which is making the Internet more user-friendly (effectively the driving force behind Web2), but it comes at a cost to the developer in terms of complexity and time-to-market for customer websites. Pre-written Javascript libraries provide a means to cut down on development time and to reduce the inherent complexity required to power many of the new features of a Web2 site.
Libraries like Scriptaculous, Moo, Mootools and Prototype offer the web developer ’shortcuts’ to functionality which would otherwise take too long to create by themselves or prove insurmountably difficult for the average developer to implement. By utilising these libraries, time-to-market is greatly reduced and the actual Javascript code is kept neat and small. As an added bonus, these libraries are usually fully compatible with the major browsers… something which is not always easy to achieve if you write the scripts yourself from scratch.
There is a learning curve to using the various Javascript libraries, but once you have made the effort to become acquainted with the peculiarities of any one of them, you will find your coding time greatly improved and your range of Javascript capabilities expanded to an impressive arsenal of Web2 techniques.