The introduction: You can understand JS too

How well do you know JS?

Learning JS is a continuous process, there’s no end to it, you only get better.

JS is beautiful and fun depending on your grasp of its core mechanics.

Here are 3 definitions/quotes:

“JavaScript is a prototype-based, multi-paradigm, single-threaded, dynamic language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and declarative (e.g. functional programming) styles.

…

JavaScript's dynamic capabilities include runtime object construction, variable parameter lists, function variables, dynamic script creation (via eval [a function that evaluates JS codes represented as strings]), object introspection, and source-code recovery.” - mdn docs

“JavaScript was initially created to “make web pages alive”.

The programs in this language are called scripts. They can be written right in a web page’s HTML and run automatically as the page loads.

…

Why is it called JavaScript?

When JavaScript was created, it initially had another name: “LiveScript”. But Java was very popular at that time, so it was decided that positioning a new language as a “younger brother” of Java would help.

…

But as it evolved, JavaScript became a fully independent language with its own specification called ECMAScript, and now it has no relation to Java at all.” - JS info

“From the earliest days of the Web, JavaScript has been a foundational technology that drives interactive experience around the content we consume.

…

It is simultaneously a simple, easy-to-use language that has broad appeal, and a complex and nuanced collection of language mechanics that without careful study will elude true understanding even for the most seasoned of JavaScript developers.

…

Because JavaScript can be used without understanding, the understanding of the language is often never attained.” - Kyle Simpson

2 Code samples

Let’s go basic for the introduction

// initializing a variable (1)
 var a = 2

// initiate and call a simple function (2)
function sum(num) {
   return num + 2
}

console.log(sum(a)) // output = 4

1 Exercise

var a = 2

function sum(num) {
   return num + (2 - 1)
}

console.log(sum(a)) // output?

That's a wrap for this episode, see you on the next one.

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