A comprehensive exploration of the popular JavaScript library

* Quickly look up features of the jQuery library
* Step through each function, method, and selector expression in the jQuery library with an easy-to-follow approach
* Understand the anatomy of a jQuery script
* Write your own plug-ins using jQuery's powerful plug-in architecture

In Detail

To make optimal use of jQuery, it's good to keep in mind the breadth of capabilities it provides. You can add dynamic, interactive elements to your sites with reduced development time using jQuery. If you are looking for a comprehensive reference guide to this popular JavaScript library, this book is for you.

Revised and updated for version 1.4 of jQuery, this book offers an organized menu of every jQuery method, function, and selector. Each method and function is introduced with a summary of its syntax and a list of its parameters and return value, followed by a discussion, with examples where applicable, to assist in getting the most out of jQuery and avoiding the pitfalls commonly associated with JavaScript and other client-side languages.

In this book you will be provided information about the latest features of jQuery that include Sizzle Selector, Native event delegation, Event triggering, DOM manipulation, and many more. You won't be confined to built-in functionality, you'll be able to examine jQuery's plug-in architecture and we discuss both how to use plug-ins and how to write your own. If you're already familiar with JavaScript programming, this book will help you dive right into advanced jQuery concepts. You'll be able to experiment on your own, trusting the pages of this book to provide information on the intricacies of the library, where and when you need it.

This book is a companion to Learning jQuery 1.3. Learning jQuery 1.3 begins with a tutorial to jQuery, where the authors share their knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm about jQuery to help you get the most from the library and to make your web applications shine.

jQuery 1.4 Reference Guide digs deeper into the library, taking you through the syntax specifications and following up with detailed discussions. You'll discover the untapped possibilities that jQuery 1.4 makes available, and polish your skills as you return to this guide time and again.

What you will learn from this book

* Explore the impressive jQuery JavaScript library and its capabilities with a real-world example
* Investigate jQuery's plug-in architecture, using a variety of approaches to extend the library's capabilities
* Pull information from the server without refreshing a page using the AJAX capabilities of jQuery
* Build a small script that dynamically extracts the headings from an HTML document and assembles them into a table of contents for the page
* Discover the Form plug-in for combining AJAX techniques with HTML forms
* Explore the Dimensions plug-in for getting the size and position of any element on the page--even the document and browser window
* Determine whether an element is visible by testing its current width and height using a :visible selector
* Inspect the browser environment and individual jQuery objects using the properties of jQuery
* Create an extremely powerful jQuery toolset using a combined set of a selector expression and a corresponding DOM traversal method
* Get complete and functional jQuery-powered scripts in this example-packed book

Approach

The book is a detailed reference guide, and an invaluable resource for answers to all your queries about jQuery. It is intended to be a quick reference to help at times when you need to quickly confirm a feature of the library

Who this book is written for

This book is for you if you are a web developer who wants a broad, organized view of all that jQuery library has to offer or a quick reference on their desk to refer to for particular details. Basic knowledge of HTML and CSS is required. You should be comfortable with the syntax of JavaScript, but no knowledge of jQuery is assumed.