Exploring the ugly duckling of programming languages

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JavaScript is often ridiculed as the black sheep of programming languages. The development tools, a complicated and inconsistent document object model for HTML pages, and inconsistent implementation in browsers contributes to that sentiment. But JavaScript is much more than a toy. In this article, Bruce Tate explores JavaScript's language features.
Nearly every Web developer has cursed JavaScript at one time or another. The beleaguered language sags under the weight of a complex programming model called the document object model (DOM), poor tools for implementation and debugging, and inconsistent browser implementations. Until recently, many developers had all but written off JavaScript as a necessary evil at best or a toy at worst.


But JavaScript is becoming increasingly important, and it remains the most broadly available scripting language for Web development. Some industry leaders are taking a fresh look at JavaScript, driven by the resurgence of its use. Programming techniques like Ajax (Asynchronous JavaScript + XML) make Web pages more interactive. Full Web development frameworks, such as Apache Cocoon, make increasing use of JavaScript beyond simple scripts on a Web page. A JavaScript derivative called ActionScript powers Macromedia's Flash client-side framework. And Rhino, the implementation that runs in the JVM, makes JavaScript available to Javaâ„¢ developers as a first-class scripting language

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