Book Image

Hands-on JavaScript for Python Developers

By : Sonyl Nagale

Book Image

Hands-on JavaScript for Python Developers

By: Sonyl Nagale

Overview of this book

Knowledge of Python is a great foundation for learning other languages. This book will help you advance in your software engineering career by leveraging your Python programming skills to learn JavaScript and apply its unique features not only for frontend web development but also for streamlining work on the backend. Starting with the basics of JavaScript, you’ll cover its syntax, its use in the browser, and its frameworks and libraries. From working with user interactions and ingesting data from APIs through to creating APIs with Node.js, this book will help you get up and running with JavaScript using hands-on exercises, code snippets, and detailed descriptions of JavaScript implementation and benefits. To understand the use of JavaScript in the backend, you’ll explore Node.js and discover how it communicates with databases. As you advance, you’ll get to grips with creating your own RESTful APIs and connecting the frontend and backend for holistic full-stack development knowledge. By the end of this Python JavaScript book, you’ll have the knowledge you need to write full-fledged web applications from start to finish. You’ll have also gained hands-on experience of working through several projects, which will help you advance in your career as a JavaScript developer.

Preface

Who this book is for

What this book covers

To get the most out of this book

Section 1 - What is JavaScript? What is it not?

Section 1 - What is JavaScript? What is it not?

Free Chapter

The Entrance of JavaScript into Mainstream Programming

The Entrance of JavaScript into Mainstream Programming

Technical requirements

NCSA and the need for interactivity

Early web browsers and a 10-day prototype

Enter Ecma International

HTML, CSS, and JavaScript – the best friends of the frontend

How JavaScript fits into the frontend ecosystem

Further reading

Can We Use JavaScript Server-Side? Sure!

Can We Use JavaScript Server-Side? Sure!

Technical requirements

Why use JavaScript on the server side?

The Node.js ecosystem

Threading and asynchronicity

Further reading

Nitty-Gritty Grammar

Nitty-Gritty Grammar

Technical requirements

A history of style

Punctuation and readability

The elephant in the room – whitespace

Existing standards – linting to the rescue!

Further reading

Data and Your Friend, JSON

Data and Your Friend, JSON

Technical requirements

Data types – both JavaScript and Python are dynamically typed!

Exploring data types

Arrays and sets

Objects and JSON

API calls from the frontend – Ajax

Further reading

Section 2 - Using JavaScript on the Front-End

Section 2 - Using JavaScript on the Front-End

Hello World! and Beyond: Your First Application

Hello World! and Beyond: Your First Application

Technical requirements

I/O with the console and alert messages

Working with input in a function

Using objects as a datastore

Understanding scope

Further reading

The Document Object Model (DOM)

The Document Object Model (DOM)

Technical requirements

Using selectors

Further reading

Events, Event-Driven Design, and APIs

Events, Event-Driven Design, and APIs

Technical requirements

The event life cycle

Capturing an event and reading its properties

Using Ajax and events to populate API data

Handling asynchronicity

Further reading

Working with Frameworks and Libraries

Working with Frameworks and Libraries

Technical requirements

React and React Native

Further reading

Deciphering Error Messages and Performance Leaks

Deciphering Error Messages and Performance Leaks

Technical requirements

The Error object

Using debuggers and other tools

Accommodating JavaScript's performance limitations

Further reading

JavaScript, Ruler of the Frontend

JavaScript, Ruler of the Frontend

Technical requirements

Building interactions

Using dynamic data

Understanding modern applications

Section 3 - The Back-End: Node.js vs. Python

Section 3 - The Back-End: Node.js vs. Python

What Is Node.js?

What Is Node.js?

Technical requirements

History and usage

Installation and usage

Grammar and structure

Further reading

Node.js versus Python

Node.js versus Python

Technical requirements

Philosophical differences between Node.js and Python

Performance implications

Further reading

Using Express

Technical requirements

The scaffold: Using express-generator

Routes and views

Controllers and data: Using APIs in Express

Creating an API with Express

Further reading

React with Django

React with Django

Technical requirements

Creating the React frontend

Bringing it all together

Combining Node.js with the Frontend

Combining Node.js with the Frontend

Technical requirements

Understanding the architecture handshake

The frontend and Node.js - React and image upload

Creating a recipe book with APIs and JSON

Making a restaurant database with Yelp and Firebase

Enter Webpack

Technical requirements

The need for bundling and modules

Deploying our project

Section 4 - Communicating with Databases

Section 4 - Communicating with Databases

Security and Keys

Security and Keys

Technical requirements

Authentication versus authorization

.gitignore and environment variables for credentials

Node.js and MongoDB

Node.js and MongoDB

Technical requirements

Storing and retrieving data

Wiring your API together

Putting It All Together

Putting It All Together

Technical requirements

The project brief

Scaffolding – React

The backend – setting up our API

The database – all CRUD operations

Further reading

Assessments

Other Books You May Enjoy

Other Books You May Enjoy

Leave a review - let other readers know what you think

Customer Reviews

5 star

0

4 star

0

3 star

0

2 star

0

1 star

0

Summary

JavaScript doesn't exist in isolation! MongoDB is a great companion to JavaScript as it is designed to be object-oriented and relies on a JavaScript-friendly querying syntax. We've learned the principles behind TDD, worked with the MVC paradigm, and expanded our game a bit more.

As with all coding exercises, be sure to consider the use cases when using a database such as MongoDB: while MongoDB's syntax isn't vulnerable to SQL injections, it is still vulnerable to other types of injections that can compromise your application.

Hopefully, our starship game is interesting enough for you to keep developing it. Our next (and final) chapter wraps together our principles of JavaScript development and polishes our game.