Chapter 1 Key Terms Flashcards
Application Programming Interface (API)
A set of procedures that access an application such as a web page or a web browser.
Argument
Values supplied to a method or function call statement.
Assignment operator
The operator ( = ) used to assign the value on the right side of an expression to the variable on the left side of the expression.
Back end
A device or application from which a client requests information; a server fulfills a request for information by managing the request or serving the requested information to the client.
Block comment
A comment that contains multiple lines of code; created by enclosing the multiple lines within the /* and */ characters.
Browser Object Model (BOM)
The aspect of JavaScript that describes how to access the features and behaviors of the browser itself.
Camel case
A method of capitalization that uses a lowercase letter for the first letter of the first word in a variable name, with subsequent words starting with an initial cap, as in myVariableName.
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
A complementary language to HTML, developed for specifying the appearance of web page elements on a specified device.
character data (CDATA)
A section of an HTML document that is not interpreted as markup.
Client
In a two-tier system, the tier that presents an interface to the user.
Client-side scripting
Programming written in a scripting language that runs on a local browser (on the client tier) instead of on a web server (on the processing tier).
Code editor
An app used for writing and managing program code such as the code for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
Comments
Lines of code that are not processed by browsers and which serve as notes about the meaning and purpose of program statements.
Compiled
A process by which instructions from a programming language are transformed into machine code.
Compiler
A program that transforms programming code into machine code that can be understood by the computer or computer device.
Declare
The process by which a variable is defined using the var, let, or const keywords.
Document Object Model (DOM)
The aspect of JavaScript that describes how to access the contents of the web page and user actions within that page.
ECMA-262
An international, standardized version of JavaScript.
ECMAScript
An international, standardized version of JavaScript.
European Computer Manufacturers Association (ECMA)
A non-profit organization that develops standards in computer hardware, communications, and programming languages, including ECMAScript.
Event
A specific occurrence within a web page or browser that is initiated either by the user or the browser itself.
Event handler
Code that tells a browser how to respond to an event within the web page or browser.
Expression
A literal value or variable or a combination of literal values, variables, operators, and other expressions that can be evaluated by a JavaScript interpreter to produce a result.
Front end
In a two-tier system, the tier that presents an interface to the user.
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
A markup language used to define the content and structure of web pages.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
A communication standard used on the web to exchange information between servers and client devices.
Identifier
The name assigned to a variable.
Initialize
The process by which a variable is defined and given an initial value.
Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
An application that manages all of the facets of website development, including the writing and testing of JavaScript code.
Interpreter
A program that scans scripting language code for errors and executes it.
JavaScript
A client-side scripting language that allows web page authors to develop interactive web pages and sites.
JavaScript source file
An external file containing JavaScript code, which can be referenced in a web document.
JScript
An early version of JavaScript used by Microsoft Internet Explorer in the 1990s.
keywords
Special words that are part of the JavaScript language syntax.
Library
A JavaScript source file that contains generic scripts that can be applied to different web apps.
Line Comment
A comment that occupies only a single line or part of a line; created by adding two slashes ( // ) before the comment text.
Literal
A value such as a literal string or a number.
Literal string
Text passed as an argument, contained within double or single quotation marks.
Machine Code
Binary code that can be understood by a computer or computer device.
Markup Language
A language that defines the content, structure, and appearance of a document.
Method
A procedure associated with an object.
Middle Tier
The part of a three-tier client/server system that handles the interaction between the web browser client and the data storage tier.
Multitier client/server system
A system that consists of three distinct pieces: the client tier, the processing tier, and the data storage tier.
n-tier client/server system
A system that consists of three distinct pieces: the client tier, the processing tier, and the data storage tier.
Object
Programming code and data that can be treated as an individual unit or component.
Operand
A variable or a literal contained in an expression.
Operator
A symbol such as + or * used in an expression to manipulate operands.
Parsed Character Data (PCDATA)
A section of an HTML document that is interpreted as markup.
Passing arguments
Providing one or more arguments for a method or called function.
Procedure
In a computer program, a logical unit composed of individual statements, which is used to perform a specific task.
Processing tier
The part of a three-tier client/server system that handles the interaction between the web browser client and the data storage tier.
Programming language
A set of instructions directing the actions of the computer or computer device.
Property
A piece of data, such as a color or a name, that is associated with an object.
Reserved words
Special words that are part of the JavaScript language syntax.
Script
A JavaScript program contained within a web page.
Scripting Language
A subcategory of programming languages that are interpreted rather than compiled and run directly from a program or script, often used to control a web page or return some sort of response to a web browser.
Server
A device or application from which a client requests information; a server fulfills a request for information by managing the request or serving the requested information to the client.
Server-side scripting
Programming written in a scripting language that is executed from a web server.
Statement
An individual line of code in a JavaScript program.
Static
Description of a web page that can’t change after a browser renders it.
Text String
Text passed as an argument, contained within double or single quotation marks.
Three-tier client/server system
A system that consists of three distinct pieces: the client tier, the processing tier, and the data storage tier.
Two-tier system
A system consisting of a client and a server.
Validating Parser
A program that checks whether a web page is well formed and whether the document conforms to a specific DTD.
Validation
The process of checking that information provided by users conforms to rules to ensure that it appropriately answers the form’s questions and is provided in a format that the site’s back-end programs can work with.
Variables
The values a program stores in computer memory.
Web
A system for easily accessing cross-referenced documents using the Internet.
Web Application
A program that is executed on a server but is accessed through a web page loaded in a client browser.
Well Formed
A document that conforms to the rules and requirements of a markup language such as HTML or XHTML.
World Wide Web
A system for easily accessing cross-referenced documents using the Internet.
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
An organization established to oversee the development of web technology standards.
