Mark Eschbach

Software Developer && System Analyst

JavaScript

The common name JavaScript actually refers to the language ECMAscript. JavaScript is the name of the first implementation, written by Brenden Eich in a week while working with Netscape. ECMAscript has been evovling since '94 and has inregular releases.

JavaScript is a dynamic interpreterd object oriented language heavily influenced by LISP. Fucntions are first class objects within the language and may be assigned to variables. A function is bound to an object as a method by using the period operator on the object. Additionally a function may be bound with a function's bind method providing the object to be operated on.

The primary deployment environment for JavaScript was the browser. Netscape and several other companies distributed JavaScript application services, however the language was largely relegated to being a nessicary misunderstood evil to make dynamic pages. With the rise of AJAX in the mid-2000s JavaScript started getting serious attention. In 2009 NodeJS was released and brought with it the energy to bring JavaScript back to the server side application environment.

Environments

  • Browser - JavaScript is the ubiquitous language for the execution of behavioral code within the browser.
  • Isomorphic - A term generally applied to running the same component within the browser and HTTP service tier without modification.
  • IO.JS and NodeJS - A JavaScript reactor based platform for coopreative mutlitasking.

Notes

  • IIFE - Immediate Invoked Function Expression.
    (function iife_named(){})();