JavaScript Editor?

[Matthew]

I am very new to JavaScript, and have been using Notepad.

Is there a [cheap] editor out there that showes the JavaScript environment
variables?
Example: I just found out about the document.forms array on the web the
other day. Ideally, it would show this and other handy things.

Matthew

 

[Douglas Crockford]

I am very new to JavaScript, and have been using Notepad.

Is there a [cheap] editor out there that showes the JavaScript environment
variables?
Example: I just found out about the document.forms array on the web the
other day. Ideally, it would show this and other handy things.

You need a book. It is possible to learn things from books.

http://www.crockford.com/javascript/javascript.html

 

[Lee]

Matthew said:

I am very new to JavaScript, and have been using Notepad.

Is there a [cheap] editor out there that showes the JavaScript environment
variables?
Example: I just found out about the document.forms array on the web the
other day. Ideally, it would show this and other handy things.

In my day (which I guess has passed), you would be asking for
what we called a "manual" or "documentation".

You'll find lots of better answers than that here:
http://www.jibbering.com/faq/

 

[Brian Genisio]

Matthew said:

I am very new to JavaScript, and have been using Notepad.

Is there a [cheap] editor out there that showes the JavaScript environment
variables?
Example: I just found out about the document.forms array on the web the
other day. Ideally, it would show this and other handy things.

In my day (which I guess has passed), you would be asking for
what we called a "manual" or "documentation".

You'll find lots of better answers than that here:
http://www.jibbering.com/faq/

I think more appropriately, he is asking for a context-aware editor. I
agree, that an editor that is aware of the DOM would be very useful,
much like Visual Studio is able to finish my lines of code for me.
Unfortunately, if it is aware of the model you are using, it can only be
aware of one model, which is not the same across all browsers

I am pretty sure that Visual Interdev will do this for you for the IE
model, but I cannot verify this. Also, there is a chance that someone
has written a Javascript plugin for the eclipse IDE. Interdev is not
cheap. Eclipse is.

As far as I know, there is no good, cheap editor that will do this.

The best I have gotten, is using a text editor with syntax highlighting.
When working with Javascript only (*.js files), I have used TextPad
with the Java syntax highlighting. It is not perfect, but it works
resonably well. It only gives syntax highlighting though.

Also, I would not be suprised if someone has made an Emacs rule set for
Javascript syntax highlighting. Emacs is a very powerful text editor,
and it is cross platform (Windows, Solaris, Linux, probably Mac, etc)

Good luck,
Brian

 

[Matthew]

Brian,

That is exactly right. A "context-aware" editor would be great.

I like the suggestion of getting a text editor that highlights the
JavaScript syntax. However, that is not what I am looking for.

Everybody else,

I have a book, titled "Mastering JavaScript, Premium Edition". It is over
1000 pages long, and I am currently on page 200. I do have a way to go, but
I have projects that need to be completed yesterday (before I finish the
book ;-)

Just wondering if there was a better way.

Matthew

 

[kaeli]

Just wondering if there was a better way.

Well, if you can get used to it, Eclipse (free) has a javascript plugin.
I don't how good it is, but if you try it and like it, post that here so
we know it's decent.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/jseditor/

I never could get into Eclipse, but a lot of people like it.
I myself just use an editor with syntax highlighting.


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[Brian Genisio]

Well, if you can get used to it, Eclipse (free) has a javascript plugin.
I don't how good it is, but if you try it and like it, post that here so
we know it's decent.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/jseditor/

I never could get into Eclipse, but a lot of people like it.
I myself just use an editor with syntax highlighting.

Thanks for the pointer... I downaloaded Eclipse, and the JS plugin.

Unfortunately, it gives no more than syntax highlighting, and it will
itemize your vars and functions in a list, to click on. Other than
that, it is nothing special. It does not do completion for you, and it
does not know context. Nothing more than a syntax highlighting editor
around a really slow IDE. I cannot reccomend it in the current state.

Brian

 

[kaeli]

Thanks for the pointer... I downaloaded Eclipse, and the JS plugin.

Unfortunately, it gives no more than syntax highlighting, and it will
itemize your vars and functions in a list, to click on. Other than
that, it is nothing special. It does not do completion for you, and it
does not know context. Nothing more than a syntax highlighting editor
around a really slow IDE. I cannot reccomend it in the current state.

That's too bad. Thanks for posting this so others know.

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