Spotlight customer reviews:
|
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Another bullseye from HeadFirst!
Comment: Web development is not my primary job so I was looking for something to give me a better understanding of JavaScript without too great an investment of time and money. This book is it! Amazing detail but incredibly easy to follow. The book is simple to scan for overviews of each chapter, which lets users with some background skip what they are already familiar with and jump into sections they want. If you are new to HeadFirst, you are in for a treat. The books build knowledge concept by concept with lots of illustrations and practice to develop increasing skill and then become favored reference sources. My only complaint is that the middle pages come loose from the binding with a lot of use. All in all, I think new and novice users will be thrilled with this book. I can't wait for the HeadFirst book on PHP and MySQL:)
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Need more how to and less humor
Comment: This book tried too hard to be funny. I wanted more in depth how to and less humor. I am a beginner so I thought this book would do the job but I could only do the examples they gave. I didn't have enough information to improvise after doing an example.
I think a better book is JavaScript Goodies...
Customer Rating:
Summary: An Average book
Comment: After contemplating which Javascript book to get, I decided on HFJS. I read the Head First HTML book and it was great therefore I thought HFJS would be the same. I was wrong. Unlike the HTML book where things are explained from beginning to end, the HFJS is the opposite. Granted I am a real beginner to Javascript and the first few pages were fine. But after reading into it more, things are not explained thoroughly until the end of the book. After 250 pages I just gave up because I wasnt understanding it. It is a good book but not for beginners like me. Hopefully the next edition, they will explain things in the beginning more throughly.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Frustratingly backwards
Comment: I liked the Headfirst HTML/XHTML/CSS book, but I found this one poorly organized and discouraging. The exercises frequently required knowledge of concepts that had not yet been introduced. And I found the extended examples used in the book (such as an unrealistic and complicated movie theatre "seat finding" dealeo) unnecessarily confusing.
After starting it several times and struggling through 300 or so pages I broke down and bought The Book of Javascript (2nd ed) by David Thau. I'm much happier: good clear explanations from the get go, and a focus on javascript as actually used in the world.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Compared to Head First HTML, a BIG disappointment
Comment: Short version: Very disappointed by Head First JavaScript ("HFJS"). Loved Head First HTML/XHTML/CSS ("HFHTML"), felt like I retained everything from it immediately, but couldn't figure out why the info in HFJS wasn't sinking in. Turned to web tutorials (better), and finally changed to Simply JavaScript(Sitepoint), a much more clearly written and explained book.
Long version: Less than a month ago, I knew very little about web design, much less any sort of programming. I'd tried to teach myself HTML from a rather dry text perhaps ten years ago, but nothing stuck. But I had a desire to give it another go, and set about finding another HTML book. I settled on HFHTML -- while it took many more pages to explain concepts which other books treated succinctly, the writing was much better in the Head First volume and I guessed I'd retain more from it.
It turned out to be a fantastic purchase, I devoured the book and within a week or so became proficient enough at HTML and CSS to code some complex site layouts. Since my latest site required dynamic behavior, JavaScript seemed like the logical next step. Given my positive experience (almost miraculous) with the HFHTML book, my first choice for a JavaScript book was HFJS. The many positive reviews on Amazon reinforced my decision.
When it arrived, I eagerly began from the beginning, skipping nothing (just as I'd done w/HFHTML). Did the quizzes, the crosswords, but from the beginning, things were a little off. In HFHTML, the authors show you where and how to introduce new code in your example pages, but in HFJS, it wasn't even clear whether you were supposed to be coding along, or merely just reading the book's examples. And while HFHTML proceeded very logically from basic to more advanced concepts, HFJS appeared to be veering all over the place. I persisted for 250 pages, but had to admit to myself that none of it was sinking in.
I turned to some web tutorials (better), and finally, purchased Simply Javascript (Sitepoint). While it is not a perfect book, either, I think it explains JavaScript more clearly than HFJS, and is better about starting the beginner off with good coding habits, such as keeping JavaScript code in separate files, rather than in the header of the HTML document (something which HFJS doesn't do). It also cuts to the chase of what most aspiring web designers want to use JavaScript for, which is dynamically modifying the content of pages via the Document Object Model ("DOM").
To be fair to the HFJS author, JavaScript is a SIGNIFICANTLY harder language to learn than HTML or CSS. And HFJS does a good job introducing and explaining the types of JavaScript data (e.g., text, boolean, number). But HFJS overall was a disappointment, and doesn't live up to the high standards set with HFHTML.
|
|
|
