What to read first...?...

Hello.

I've already learned HTML/CSS...I'm completing the learning process for
Javascript and the next language is going to be Actionscript.

Now, I've been reading the opinions about different Actionscript books and
some of them say that if you are knew to programming, then you may want to
read a book about programming basics first. Is this the route that I need to
go or should learning Javascript be the facilitator for learning Actionscript?

If I do need to get some programming basic book, what are some
recommendations?

Any response would be appreciated.

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LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com wrote:

I've already learned HTML/CSS...I'm completing the learning process for
Javascript
^^^^^^^^^^

ISTM much you have yet to learn. It is called _JavaScript_ to begin with.

and the next language is going to be Actionscript.

_ActionScript_. However, you should consider learning SVG and SVG scripting
first. SVG is an open Web standard; Adobe Flash is not.

Now, I've been reading the opinions about different Actionscript books and
some of them say that if you are knew to programming, then you may want to
read a book about programming basics first. Is this the route that I need to
go

You cannot build a house on quicksand.

or should learning Javascript be the facilitator for learning Actionscript?

Since both JavaScript and ActionScript are ECMAScript implementations, with
JavaScript to date implementing the prototype-based ECMAScript Ed. 3 at most
but ActionScript 2.0 and 3.0 implementing Netscape's now-outdated ECMAScript
Ed. 4 proposal to support classes and strict typing as well, it would be a
good idea to learn about ECMAScript first, then J(ava)Script, and then
ActionScript.

Adobe provides newsgroups and Web forums for discussing ActionScript
explicitly (my news server has the newsgroups adobe.livemotion.actionscript,
macromedia.flash.actionscript, and macromedia.homesite.actionscripts);
I suggest you ask ActionScript-specific questions there instead.

If I do need to get some programming basic book, what are some
recommendations?

This question would have better been asked in comp.lang.misc as it is far
too general.

I once used Robert Sedgewick's "Algorithms" (in Pascal) in order to improve
my skill in general programming. I never needed any book about programming
since then, because there are plenty of online resources available for free,
including this newsgroup and its archive at Google Groups.

I presume "Algorithms in Java" could get you started nowadays, with the
provision that Java, despite similarities in syntax, is not an ECMAScript
implementation and therefore Java and JavaScript differ from one another in
several regards.


You should not be using the flawed Web interface that you apparently used
for your posting. For example, the address part of the From header must
specify a publicly available mailbox if you post to a public newsgroup like
this one. Since <u39402@uwe> does not have a FQDN in its domain part, it
does not specify such a mailbox.

See also http://jibbering.com/faq/


PointedEars
--
Use any version of Microsoft Frontpage to create your site.
(This won't prevent people from viewing your source, but no one
will want to steal it.)
-- from <http://www.vortex-webdesign.com/help/hidesource.htm>

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:

Since both JavaScript and ActionScript are ECMAScript implementations, with
JavaScript to date implementing the prototype-based ECMAScript Ed. 3 at most
but ActionScript 2.0 and 3.0 implementing Netscape's now-outdated ECMAScript
Ed. 4 proposal to support classes and strict typing as well, it would be a
good idea to learn about ECMAScript first, then J(ava)Script, and then
ActionScript.

Okay...

So learning ECMAScript would facilitate the process of learning both
languages. Now you mentioned EMCAScript Ed. 3 & 4, with 4 being the most
outdated, but ActionScript 3.0 is based on this outdated language . So which
one would you recommend I learn?

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LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com wrote:

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
Since both JavaScript and ActionScript are ECMAScript implementations, with
JavaScript to date implementing the prototype-based ECMAScript Ed. 3 at most
but ActionScript 2.0 and 3.0 implementing Netscape's now-outdated ECMAScript
Ed. 4 proposal to support classes and strict typing as well, it would be a
good idea to learn about ECMAScript first, then J(ava)Script, and then
ActionScript.

[...] Now you mentioned EMCAScript Ed. 3 & 4, with 4 being the most
outdated, but ActionScript 3.0 is based on this outdated language .
So which one would you recommend I learn?

You misunderstood. ActionScript 2+ is (probably) based on Netscape's
proposal for ES4 [1], as is JScript .NET. However, work on ECMAScript Ed. 4
has continued as a more open project at <http://ecmascript.org/> recently;
this and AOL's shutting down the Netscape browser division renders the
original proposal somewhat obsolete with regard to the standardization
process. But that does not mean that the implementations based on the
proposal are obsolete as well. At least not until there is a Specification.

Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.


PointedEars
___________
[1]
http://web.archive.org/web/200707011...es4/index.html
--
realism: HTML 4.01 Strict
evangelism: XHTML 1.0 Strict
madness: XHTML 1.1 as application/xhtml+xml
-- Bjoern Hoehrmann

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:

Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.

PointedEars
___________
[1]
http://web.archive.org/web/200707011...es4/index.html

Well, it sounds like I can purchase books on ECMAScript, visit websites...
whatever,
and use it as a cross reference while I continue learning JavaScript and
begin learning ActionScript.
Do you think?

So far the learning process for JavaScript has been going well. I've learned
about objects, methods, functions,
arrays, loops..etc. I'm thinking this should be enough to begin learning
ActionScript as I cross reference the
basics in ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3...

--
Message posted via WebmasterKB.com
http://www.webmasterkb.com/Uwe/Forum...cript/200806/1

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:

Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.

PointedEars
___________
[1]
http://web.archive.org/web/200707011...es4/index.html

Also, I've been searching for book references online for ECMAScript for the
past two hours and haven't found anything. Were there any books printed for
this or is it just online PDF overviews?

--
Message posted via http://www.webmasterkb.com

On Jun 14, 5:24 pm, "LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com" <u39402@uwe>
wrote:

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.

PointedEars
___________
[1]
http://web.archive.org/web/200707011...zilla.org/js/l...

Also, I've been searching for book references online for ECMAScript for the
past two hours and haven't found anything. Were there any books printed for
this or is it just online PDF overviews?

The Ecma-262 r3 specification is very useful for getting more in-depth
understanding to the productions of the EcmaScript language. However,
reading the EcmaScript spec as a starting point might seem boring and
confusing and you probably won't make much progress on your scripting
skills this way.

Probably most scripters self-taught, using combination of learned
programming skills and online references. Doing things and learning
from the experience is usually pretty effective. You can write a
simple script and post it here and get feedback. For example, these
are some basic scripts that you can try:
1) swap images
2) toggle the css display of an element from another element's click
event

You can use:
the DOM Event and Style specs, the HTML 4 spec, the CSS 2.1 spec.
JSLint
HTML and CSS validators

Garrett

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LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com wrote:

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and
their implementations first. See also
http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.

Well, it sounds like I can purchase books on ECMAScript, visit
websites... whatever, and use it as a cross reference while I continue
learning JavaScript and begin learning ActionScript. Do you think?

I do not think you will need to purchase a book on ECMAScript (if there is
any), however using the Specification as a cross reference is certainly a
good approach.


PointedEars
--
Prototype.js was written by people who don't know javascript for people
who don't know javascript. People who don't know javascript are not
the best source of advice on designing systems that use javascript.
-- Richard Cornford, cljs, <f806at$ail$1$8300dec7 (AT) news (DOT) demon.co.uk>

LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com wrote:

Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.

Also, I've been searching for book references online for ECMAScript for the
past two hours and haven't found anything. Were there any books printed for
this or is it just online PDF overviews?

I do not know if there is a book on ECMAScript; I never needed any. The
"online PDF overviews" as you call them are in fact the free PDF/MS Word
versions of the Language Specifications that you can order as hardcopy from
Ecma International as well. These describe the ECMAScript Language in great
detail.

Please use a working NetNews client next time. I can recommend Mozilla
Thunderbird and KNode:

<http://getthunderbird.com/>
<http://kontact.kde.org/knode/>


HTH

PointedEars
--
Prototype.js was written by people who don't know javascript for people
who don't know javascript. People who don't know javascript are not
the best source of advice on designing systems that use javascript.
-- Richard Cornford, cljs, <f806at$ail$1$8300dec7 (AT) news (DOT) demon.co.uk>

dhtml wrote:

"LayneMitch via WebmasterKB.com" wrote:
Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn wrote:
Therefore I suggest you learn about ECMAScript Editions 1 to 3 and their
implementations first. See also <http://PointedEars.de/es-matrix>.
PointedEars
___________
[1]
http://web.archive.org/web/200707011...zilla.org/js/l...
Also, I've been searching for book references online for ECMAScript for the
past two hours and haven't found anything. Were there any books printed for
this or is it just online PDF overviews?

The Ecma-262 r3 specification is very useful for getting more in-depth
understanding to the productions of the EcmaScript language. However,
reading the EcmaScript spec as a starting point might seem boring and
confusing and you probably won't make much progress on your scripting
skills this way.

The grammar productions of ECMAScript would be the part of the Specification
that I would consider to be the least useful to newbies, and trying to
interpret them can become tiresome easily because of their complexity; plain
syntax rules can be much easier understood by them reading the Core
JavaScript Reference and MSDN Library.

Instead, the definitions and explanations in the Specification, and the
algorithms used for the *evaluation* of syntax are very useful for
understanding what is going on in implementations. For example, what
statements and expressions are there, how are operands converted, what is
supposed to happen when you use an unqualified identifier, call a method,
create an object, access an object's property aso. These are things you
can test in an implementation right away.


PointedEars
--
Anyone who slaps a 'this page is best viewed with Browser X' label on
a Web page appears to be yearning for the bad old days, before the Web,
when you had very little chance of reading a document written on another
computer, another word processor, or another network. -- Tim Berners-Lee