The Javascript source

HTML 5

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:39:06 GMT

The recent buzz over HTML 5 this week at Google I/O could not have come at a better time.

It reminds me of another time, back in 2005, when the economy was just starting to recover from the dotcom bust. Ajax made the scene (heavily backed by Google in the form of Suggest and Maps) and got people excited about doing cool things on the web again.

Now the economy is in the crapper again, and here comes HTML 5 (again backed by Google in the form of Chrome and Wave). Looking at some of the demos, I feel the same exhilaration I once felt when I first recognized the potential of DHTML. In many ways, HTML 5 picks up where DHTML -- or DOM scripting of whatever -- left off long ago.

I offer no analysis. It's the most excited I've been about web development in years.

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Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:08:45 GMT

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Keeping Javascript clean

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:11 GMT

Think Vitamin has an article up about keeping your Javascript clean and maintainable. The value of following these 8 steps is invaluable in creating code that is easy to read and logical for whoever has to read it. Sure, some of the tips here are fairly obvious to the hardcore JS coder, but it is good to review. Read through the article and test it against your current practices.

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List incoming links with Smugpanel

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:11 GMT

Want to show off your high Google ranking? Show the world who links to you with Chris Heilmann's Smugpanel. This lightweight tool displays a list of incoming links on your site, and features some cool dynamic behavior that "shuffles" the list when you click a link.

Smugpanel utilizes the Yahoo Site Explorer Inbound Links API, so you'll need to register a Yahoo application ID in order to use it. Other than that, it's just a matter of dropping the code on your server, and you're ready to exercise your bragging rights.

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Smooth color picker using Javascript

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:11 GMT

Who says AJAX applications can't look and feel like their desktop counterparts? This javascript color selector is smooth, fluid, and looks like it came straight out of a desktop graphics app. You can drag your mouse around the big color selector box, drag the slider up and down, and your results update instantly. Other attempts like ColourMod have been clunky. I've tested this in both Firefox and IE and it works perfectly.

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Using Opera to debug IE javascript errors

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:11 GMT

We all despise IE and how it makes our lives so much more difficult. Debugging javascript errors in the browser we all love to hate is just as bad. How many times have you gotten the error "object expected"? Great help. Well did you ever think to use Opera's handy debugger to squash those wretched ie bugs? CodeGirl brought this up on her blog when she was testing a new web app she was working on. In short, use the Opera debugger to resolve javascript issues in Internet Explorer.

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Create an auto-hide dock with javascript and CSS

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:11 GMT

Everybody wants to be like OSX, including Michael Whalen of Whalesalad.com. With a little creativity, Michael has created a semi-transparent dock that fades down when you mouse over the header of his website. Inside the dock he has links with darker semi-transparent rollovers. The code is fairly simple and relies on Script.aculo.us (prototype.js and effects.js) for the animations. The hardest part of this project according to Michael was getting the dock to fade away when you mouse out of the header area. To get around this, he used timers and some extra divs. Apparently this only works properly in Firefox, so everyone else beware. It's a good technique but hopefully he can expand it such as adding graphics that zoom-in like Google OSX. Full zip of all needed files included at the bottom of Michael's page.

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A javascript boot camp tutorial

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Amy Hoy from Slash7.com gave a 3 hour tutorial on Javascript at O'Reilly OSCON 2006. Because she is such a nice person, Amy has released her 3-meg PDF and source code used in her presentation. These are excellent resources to keep handy when you need to look up a method or object. This is no skimpy wimpy PDF; it's 108 pages! Give it a quick read through because it is rather entertaining (well to me anyways).

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Add mouse wheel scrolling to your next web app

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Using Javascript to utilize the scroll wheel a la Google maps is the new "cool guy" thing. I found a site that walks you through the necessary code so you can add it to your next project. What you can use it for besides scrolling in and out is beyond me. Remember, not everyone has a scroll wheel mouse, so use with caution. If you have any great uses for something like this leave a comment. I'm curious as to what other people are imagining...

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The unofficial Google paint

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Google has been into office products lately with Google Spreadsheet recently launched and Writely soon to be too. But Google forgot the coolest office app of all -- MS Paint. Now, thanks to a clever Javascripter, a parody is released for our consumption. Mind you this is not an official Google product, but it sure should be. The classic MS Paint interface and functionality have been captured beautifully. Most tools don't work and pop up a confirm box stating "unimplemented. But the tools that do work are a perfect emulation. If only the spray paint can was working...

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Amber and Russ

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

This postscript is to thank the wonderful Amber Rhea and Russell Heimlich for their work here. The good news is that they are both remaining in the Weblogs, Inc. family. You can find Russ at DV Guru, and Amber at Download Squad. This blog will remain archived for reference and searching. Thanks to everyone who visited here!

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It's been real

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Well, folks, today officially marks the final day of The Javascript Weblog. I've had a lot of fun blogging here for the past 7 months, and hopefully my posts have been helpful and informative to you as well.

If you are so heartbroken at the thought of this blog going dark because you just can't get enough of Amber Rhea, worry not! You can find me at the Georgia Podcast Network, where I pontificate about a variety of topics; and my personal blog, Being Amber Rhea. And you might just catch me somewhere else 'round the Weblogs, Inc. network, as well.

I'll leave you with links to some of my favorite Javascript/webdev information sites:

Thanks, y'all.

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Rotating ads with Ajax

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Here's another cool and useful thing you can do with Ajax: serve rotating ads. Instead of settling for a static ad on a page a user might not refresh for minutes or even hours, you can set the ads to rotate at a predetermined interval. The concept and implementation are so simple, it's a wonder this hasn't taken off more. Just put the ad inside an iframe and refresh its contents on every XHR call. (Caveat: if you're using a Strict doctype, your page won't validate, since iframes aren't valid in Strict. Perhaps there's a way to achieve the same thing using the object element?)

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Thickbox 2.0 released

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Thickbox 2.0 is the ultimate lightbox spin off. Besides supporting multiple images, with Thickbox 2.0 you can display inline content, iframed content, or content served through AJAX with a hybrid modal. Check out the examples and learn how to add it to your site. Very slick! I wish this was out 4 months ago.

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Dynamic docking boxes

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

James at Brothercake brings us Docking Boxes (dbx) - drag-and-drop, snap-to-grid boxes with show/hide functionality. (All the functionality is fully accessible via keyboard, as well.) When I first saw this, I thought, "Cool!" - but I couldn't think of any practical uses for it.

However, the more I thought about it, I realized Docking Boxes could actually serve a practical purpose all across the Internet. There are tons of sites that offer customizable profile pages, including the option to show or hide various pieces of content (Yahoo and Frappr are two that immediately come to mind). Currently, customizing your Yahoo profile is kind of a pain; it takes forever and the interface is clunky. But what if you could simply drag and drop content boxes to wherever you want them on the page? Hell, if Docking Boxes really took off, even MySpace might start to suck a little less!

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Javascript outside of the browser

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

When you think of Javascript, you generally think of the web. But Javascript is used in many different places other than cyberspace. So if you are curious about trying out Javascript in a new environment, check out these guides.

Apple / Yahoo widgets both utilize (X)HTML and Javascript for creating simple mini-applications that users can access on their desktop. Both fun and functional.

Sony's popular video editing program, Vegas, has had scripting support since version 4.0. Using a Javascript syntax, developers can add their own functionality to the program to do several repetitive tasks with the click of a button, for example.

Adobe has a host of applications that incorporate scripting support.

Know of any other applications that use Javascript and have good guides for getting started? Post them in the comments.

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Ajax and Firefox: a match made in heaven?

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

MyStickies is a burgeoning service-cum-Firefox extension that allows you to place virtual sticky notes all over the web via - you guessed it - Ajax. Its creators describe it as "bookmarks on steroids." For it to work, you have to sign up for a MyStickies account and install a Firefox extension. That's how the magic happens.

And MyStickies isn't alone in its incorporation of extensions. The phenomenon has led Dietrich Kappe to propose the term Bejax - "Browser Extensions and Ajax." He wonders whether combining the power of Ajax with the ease-of-use of browser extensions could be the future of web apps.

What do you think?

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Javascript speed tests

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Sean Patrick Kane tested the Javascript performance of the three popular browsers on the Windows side to see how they stack up against one another. You can run his test for yourself with the click of a button. The results are interesting. The slowest was Firefox, most likely due to the many extensions Sean claims his love for. The winner of this informal test was almost 3 times faster than the rest of the pack. You'll have to read the article yourself to find out who it is...

P.S. Post your scores in the comments section. My results looked like this after one run ...

Firefox - 4922 ms
IE - 3642 ms
Firefox (Safe Mode) - 3438 ms
Opera - 1188 ms

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Ajax chat and push vs. pull

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Storm has created a wonderfully simple Ajax chat module which can function either as a live chat interface or a "graffiti board." There is a demo available for your chatting pleasure.

In the blog post that accompanies the module, Storm poses the question of whether Ajax applications can truly be "push" applications. It seems to me that Google's GTalk is an embodiment of an answer in the affirmative. However, since I'm not familiar with all the intricacies of GTalk, I'll invite readers to discuss the issue in the comments section. (Sadly, I can't embed the Ajax chat module right here in the blog post.)

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Rotating solar system

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Will Jessup created an interesting rotate script using jQuery. To put the script to good use, he made a solar system model. The script is very responsive to the movement of your mouse and you can look at the planets orbiting the sun from any angle. Here is a link directly to the source code and to see the model in action, click the read link below.

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XMLHttpRequest in IE 7

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:54:10 GMT

Michael Mahemoff at Ajaxian addresses the issue of native XMLHttpRequest support in IE 7. The IE 7 team has repeatedly stated, with relative fanfare, that the new browser will include native XMLHttpRequest. But, as Michael points out, the question remains: just how native is this native XMLHttpRequest?

Two points worth mentioning are 1) xhr.prototype fails and 2) IE has an option to disable native XHR. So, when native XMLHttpRequest support in IE is being touted, remember to take it with the appropriate serving of salt

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