A good web development framework anticipates what you need to do and makes those tasks easier and more efficient; jQuery practically reads your mind. Developers of every stripe-hobbyists and professionals alike-fall in love with jQuery the minute they've reduced 20 lines of clunky JavaScript into three lines of elegant, readable code. This new, concise JavaScript library radically simplifies how you traverse HTML documents, handle events, perform animations, and add Ajax interactions to your web pages.

jQuery in Action, like jQuery itself, is a concise tool designed to make you a more efficient and effective web developer. In a short 300 pages, this book introduces you to the jQuery programming model and guides you through the major features and techniques you'll need to be productive immediately. The book anchors each new concept in the tasks you'll tackle in day-to-day web development and offers unique lab pages where you immediately put your jQuery knowledge to work.

There are dozens of JavaScript libraries available now, with major companies like Google, Yahoo and AOL open-sourcing their in-house tools. This book shows you how jQuery stacks up against other libraries and helps you navigate interaction with other tools and frameworks.

jQuery in Action offers a rich investigation of the up-and-coming jQuery library for client-side JavaScript. This book covers all major features and capabilities in a manner focused on getting the reader up and running with jQuery from the very first sections. Web Developers reading this book will gain a deep understanding of how to use jQuery to simplify their pages and lives, as well as learn the philosophy behind writing jQuery-enhanced pages.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 49 Ratings

Useful and Average - 2009-10-24
Reviewer Rating:
Overall-
This book is worth the investment to get you started quickly with JQuery. Good programmers will quickly be a-Googling. Too bad I can't rate it 3.75 stars as 3 is too low and 4 is too high. You must know JavaScript and CSS. Get the Rhino now.
Pros-
Helpful jumpstart for experienced programmers
Occasional depth and insight provided for some JQuery features
Good chapters on Selectors and Events
Cons-
Inconsistent subject matter treatment (depth for some, recap of documentation for others)
Poor editing and lax conversational style
Convoluted example code
AJAX deserves much deeper treatment. I'll grant you that JQuery AJAX could be a standalone book it its own right.
Discussion-
Manning editors are not in the same league as O'Reilly and the editing of this text is yet another example. O'Reilly does set a high editorial standard, but it's one that should be applied to technical content from any source. For example, a simple a search and delete for all instances of the word "concise" would be an improvement. Many other semantic-free words and phrases could be eliminated to make the text, well... more concise. Additionally, I find informal usage in technical material to be a distraction and while this book was not felon, it is a minor offender. Call me old-fashioned, but I object to the term "sucks" when referring to undesirable people or objects particularly in reference material. One final hypothetical regarding usage - is it possible to pre-fill a list box? Or can you only fill a list box? I maintain that it's impossible to pre-do anything unless you own a time machine. Try this one on your five-year old. "Please pre-tie your shoes before your trip on the laces and post-hurt yourself." Yes, I was pre-born with a pre-idiosyncrasy. My wife thinks I'm just being an a-hole.
The example code is passable but there are instances where it fails to underscore the intended concept. It's far too easy to drag in extraneous code and mark-up when all that is needed is a snippet. The concept gets lost in the process. I prefer small examples that provide focused concept applications and perhaps a comprehensive example to wrap up a chapter. Given the snippets, I can compose a meaningful whole. I bought the MEAP content for the second edition and the dynamic forms, iTunes-like example is totally out of control. Manning editors are you out there? Look at the wild RegEx in this wild example and I rest my case. The example code for AJAX is apparently provided in downloadable format for PHP and Tomcat users. This certainly doesn't help anyone using another platform. I hacked together a WCF solution that ultimately made into production so I guess I have Manning to thank for that. Perhaps we all need an AJAX server mock implement

Disappointed - 2009-10-13
Reviewer Rating:
This book is deep and narrow. I am very disappointed by the coverage of the JQuery UI and other plug-ins. I expected more coverage of plug-ins and recommendations of which to use and how to use them. I browsed the TOC online and thought there was better coverage of plug-ins.

This book is good for somebody who wants to know the inner details of JQuery and develop their own plug-ins. If you want applied JQuery, look elsewhere.

I absolutely love this book - 2009-11-01
Reviewer Rating:
I am beginner with jQuery and this book was great help to start with it.

Excellent Book - 2009-10-29
Reviewer Rating:
It is an outstanding book on jQuery. It explains key concepts in detail and in easy to understand language. I highly recommend it.

One of the best computer books I've ever used - 2009-10-08
Reviewer Rating:
This is definitely one of the best computer books (in any language) I've every read. Probably THE best web development book. You know how some programming books sometimes have two sections, one for descriptions and examples and one for the API/Function/etc. reference? Well, the great thing about this book is that it combines these. Each chapter (9 total + appendix, 339 pages) has a set purpose, followed by many examples which each introduce a new function. This new function is then documented (return values, parameters, etc.)

For me, at least, this is the best way to learn. I suppose that the reason all programming books can't do this is because the language has too many functions or concepts. This is one of things I love about jQuery (fantastic job, John Resig!!!)- you can do a lot with a little code. Because of this, there are not many functions (maybe 50-60 total?)

If you have never used jQuery or if you want a better grasp on it (which is why I bought it), then get this book. Yes, the online documentation for jQuery is excellent, but this book (a) has more explanations and (b) is printed which I like as a desktop reference. This book is highly recommended.

Browse Similar Topics

Top Level Categories:
Programming

Sub-Categories:
Programming > JavaScript