Want To Learn JavaScript? Here Are 8 Best Ways To Do That

JavaScript is undoubtedly 'the holy grail' when it comes to designing a website. There are innumerable examples of websites built on the richness of JavaScript that simply tends to pull visitors back and then back again. If that wasn't enough, JavaScript can also be used to develop awe inspiring games, APIs and scrolling abilities. However learning something new is always challenging, even scary!

Here are the top ways to learn JavaScript:

1. Understand what JavaScript Is and Isn’t

Before you dig your paws into learning JavaScaript, you must have one thing clear in your head: understand what it is and what it actually does. All other things come secondary. Take note, JavaScript is not jQuery, Flash, or Java. It's all together different, essentially a language of the browser that adds interactivity to an otherwise static page. It works in conjunction to HTML or CSS instead of simply replacing them.

2. Work Through the Courses at Codecademy.com

Codecademy touts itself as 'the easiest way to learn how to code.' Currently offers two courses: Getting Started with Programming and JavaScript Quick Start Guide. Offers short lessons, lets you write code inside the browser and then view the results, even as you earn points and unlock achievement badges. Codecademy is free, but you need to sign up.

3. appendTo's Screencasts

Features an awesome set of screencasts exclusively targeting beginners. Gives you visual training of JavaScript in a relatively simple way. Also, you won't need to sign up!

4. Read A Good JavaScript Introduction

A Re-introduction to JavaScript

Available on the Mozilla Developers Network and offers almost as many code examples as paragraphs to introduce you to all the types, operators, control structures, and more with respect to JavaScript.

Eloquent JavaScript

This book by Marijn Haverbeke is available online for free. Also covers coding style and using JavaScript in the browser.

Getting Good with JavaScript

Comes with over 6 hours of screencasts and covers everything to let you get up and running instantly.

5. Install and Learn Firebug (or the Developer Tools)

Firebug is a debugging plugin for Firefox. Meanwhile browsers like Safari or Chrome come with their own set of Developer Tools.

Here are a couple of resources:

-Firefox:

Firebug website and wiki

Introduction to Firebug

-Developer Tools:

Developer tools website

Google I/O 2011: Chrome Dev Tools Reloaded

6. Read a Book

Professional JavaScript for Web Developers

Provides a developer-level introduction along with the more advanced and useful features of JavaScript.

JavaScript 24-Hour Trainer

There are 43 lessons, covering everything from syntax to coding guidelines and code optimisation.

JavaScript Patterns

If you're an experienced developer looking to solve problems related to objects, functions, inheritance, and other language-specific categories, the abstractions and code templates in this guide are ideal.

JavaScript: The Good Parts

This authoritative book scrapes away the bad features of JavaScript to reveal a subset of JavaScript that's more reliable, readable, and maintainable than the language as a whole-a subset you can use to create truly extensible and efficient code.

7. Build Something!

Well, don't you thing it's high time you start building something? Short of ideas. Here are a few things you can build:

1. A Photo Gallery

2. A To-do List

3. An Animating Box

and more.

8. Begin Learning a JavaScript Library

DOM manipulation, AJAX, and animations are difficult to accomplish in a cross-browser way in JavaScript. This is where a library comes in.

Most Popular Libraries:

jQuery

Dojo

and more.