Steve's Hot Javascript Training - Introduction - Part 3

Welcome back to the series, fellow readers! As we discussed in the previous article of the series, all the web browsers were covered, except for Opera. We are attempting to find out the version, so that we are all in sync when we do the exercises. You may be perhaps asking yourself what I mean by this. If our web browsers are in sync with the version, there is 100% guarantee that our scripts will work.

WHY DO WE NEED TO BE IN SYNC?

Over time, web browsers add new features. Sometimes that means old functions will still work, however they may not work in the next version (i.e. functions will be discussed in detail in a later article). The newer function is recommended to be replaced with the old function. This is considered deprecation.

CAN YOU GIVE ME AN EXAMPLE OF DEPRECATION?

Just to use an example, let’s suppose I use some JavaScript code here:

document_write("Your text goes here.”);

The code tag doesn't allow me to put a dot in place of the underscore in between document and write. Assume there is a dot between these two words.

You don’t need to understand what this exactly does for now. Just know this is a function that writes to the screen. If this function were to deprecate, this means a new function exists, such as this:

document_writebetterversion(“Your text goes here.”, 2);

Woah…back up, horse! What just happened here? All I did was change the function name from “write” to “writebetterversion”. So, what gives my sensei? All I did was change the name, right? Wrong! If you noticed there is a new feature in this function indicated by the 2 next to the comma. Logic will tell it to tab over two spaces to the right without knowing and using HTML syntax. Here’s the result when you use this new function:

Your text goes here. (ahead of 2 spaces, which it won't allow here)

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER A FUNCTION OF JAVASCRIPT DEPRECATES?

That’s a good question! After it deprecates, it may not work in the next version of JavaScript. Deprecation usually works in terms of major version revisions.

I’M READY TO TEST WITH OPERA NOW. WHERE DO I FIND THE VERSION INFO?

This way is a little bit trickier than most other web browsers.

1. First, you need to find the menu. The quick-access menu is similar to Firefox, on the left. Select that menu
2. Next, choose the Help sub-menu.
3. Finally, navigate to “About Opera” all the way down the menu. Here’s what it should look like the following:

The version shows up in the browser as indicated here:

CONCLUSION

Congratulations on reading through all this and your patience…you can take a drink of water now! Now we are using the right version, or close proximity to it. I decided to skip all the hodgepodge on history unlike other books on technology you may have read. That is my treat to you! However, in the next article, I want to show you what’s possible with JavaScript. Most people don’t know most of the possibilities it can do. I will showcase some neat stuff and then we will get in to the meat and potatoes of writing code! Thanks for reading my articles and if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, feel free to add them. I will respond!

UPDATE: Click here to go to the first part of the demonstration from my Hot JavaScript Training series.