Programming for Absolute Beginners

New programmers start here...this book introduces students or aspiring professionals to the world of computer programming using JavaScript and related technologies. This book doesn't just teach the basics of programming, but also all of the tools that new programmers need to get started, including the basics of making web pages and how the Internet works.

Programming for Absolute Beginners offers practice problems, activities, and a host of resources to get new programmers started, plus a large glossary of terms introduced in the book and that a new programmer might encounter when learning on their own. No special software is required; this book will help you regardless of what your computer setup is, and source code will be freely available via GitHub.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

* How computers work
* How computers communicate over networks
* How web pages are built with HTML and CSS
* How JavaScript works
* How JavaScript interacts with web pages
* Intermediate JavaScript topics such as recursion and scoping
* Using JavaScript for network communication

WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR

Anyone wanting to begin computer programming, including students who need to learn the fundamentals and early professionals who want to go back and revisit the basics.

JONATHAN BARTLETT is a software developer, researcher, and writer. His first book, Programming from the Ground Up, has been required reading in computer science programs from DeVry to Princeton. He has been the sole or lead author for eight books on topics ranging from computer programming to calculus. He is a technical lead for ITX, where his specialty is getting stuck projects unstuck. He is a senior software developer for McElroy Manufacturing, spearheading projects in web, mobile, and embedded software. He is now the author of several Apress books including Electronics for Beginners and more.

Chapter 1: Introduction.-

Part I: Computers, Data, and Communication.-

Chapter 2: A Short History of Computers.-

Chapter 3: How Computers Communicate.-

Chapter 4: How a Computer Looks at Data.-

Chapter 5: How Computers Work.- Part II: Basic Ingredients for Web Programming.-

Chapter 6: The HTML File Format.-

Chapter 7: Introduction to Cascading Style Sheets.-

Chapter 8: Your First JavaScript Program.-

Part III: JavaScript Fundamentals.-

9: Basic JavaScript Syntax.-

Chapter 10: Introducing Functions and Scope.-

Chapter 11: Grouping Values Together with Objects and Arrays.-

Chapter 12: Interacting with Web Pages.-

Part IV: Intermediate JavaScript.-

Chapter 13: Recursive Functions and the Stack.-

Chapter 14: Manipulating Functions and Scopes.-

Chapter 15: Intermediate Objects.-

Part V: Programming Applications.-

Chapter 16: Modernizing JavaScript.-

Chapter 17: Working With Remote Services (APIs).-

Chapter 18: Writing Server-Side JavaScript.-

Chapter 19: Conclusion.-

Appendix A: Glossary.-

Appendix B: Operating System and Browser Specifics.-

Appendix C: The JavaScript Toolbox on Docker.-

Appendix D: Character Encoding Issues.-

Appendix E: Additional Machine Language Programs.