You Don't Know JS: Up & Going 1st Edition

Was recommended this book series before but decided to go the route of Eloquent JavaScript. While EJ is a great book, filled with humor and detailed explanations, reading it was pretty challenging as someone who is new to programming.Enter YDKJSThe book is laid out succinctly and, maybe more importantly, for the layman. It assumes no prior knowledge, which was EJ'S sold weakness. The author's passion for the language and ALL of its features seems to burst from every word in this very terse book. I wish I would have started this series sooner, to be honest.

Kyle takes the perceived notions of JavaScript and makes you throw out that which you have perceived incorrectly. He shifts the our thought landscape of JavaScript being a squirrelly toy to being a powerhouse that is often used as well as misunderstood. Kyle is a thoughtful author that goes deep where needed and stays out of the compiler theorist type explanations where it would not be fruitful otherwise. While he doesn’t hide his opinion on a given topic, it’s not based in “feelings”, but that which is factually accurate. Buy every damn book in the series, you’ll be a better Engineer because if it. Bravo!!

This book delivers exactly what it claims to contain. Any beginner or intermediate JavaScript developer can benefit from this book. What makes this so special is Kyle Simpson does a very good job at breaking down the most fundamental concepts such as scope, blocks and I/O as well as not stopping at defining, but takes things a step further by defining how basic JavaScript operates. Even more advanced developers can find use of this lean, but mean reference book. Examples are clean and concise.At the cost, all front-end, back-end and full stack developers should have this sitting among their technical book collection. Cheaper than many e-books.My only issue (and this may be the case for me alone) lies with the print quality. Beginning with the Foreword and ending with the Appendix section, I have counted fourteen (14) pages with variable print density: left of each page suggest low-toner or my book was at the end of print batch run. Nonetheless, words are fairly visible, but I had to remove one star for this issue alone.Final verdict: Content is resourceful (grade A) which is all you can ask for in when it comes to technical reference material, however the print quality (C) needs quality check before shipping out to vendors.

Definitely the book you want to start to learn JavaScript with. I knew a little bit about programming before I started this book but even if I didnt it covers all the basics. Kyle's style is very simple and he breaks everything down giving you a great explanation as to what is going on in the code. I will continue to checkout his other books as well. My recommendation is to use this book and sign up for FrontEndMasters. He teaches a course there intro to js which is pretty much this book but more in depth. I would recommend this book for anyone new to programming or trying to learn JavaScript.

What I have read so far is excellent instruction. This opinion from an engineer with limited but reasonable code background, enough to follow good technical information that is meant to teach a technical subject for true understanding. True understand? Many books in technical subjects are written to virtually insure only the best can stay with it or require a class (textbook) to move through the material (and get class time for questions). We called it weeding it out, in college. This series is not that, but written like the rare technical teacher who really wants people to stay interested and learn.

This is a great book for anyone that wants to start getting serious about javascript. If you're just going to copy and paste a couple jquery plugins, this might not be for you, but if you want to be a true Javascript artist, this is the entry point. This is the first book in the "You don't know Javascript" series. I would recommend not skipping this intro into the series, it lays the framework for your entire future as a Javascript artist. From variables to closures. Even if you have some experience, this edition will probably teach you a thing or two and get you ready to deep dive into serious scripting.

Written very clear, concise, and full of optimism and excitement! I am reading this series in order to learn all the things I never did learn. My concern when I purchased this series was that it would not be updated enough with new ES6 updates but at least from this first book, it seems like the author has gone through and tried to update things for today. I am excited to go forward and fill all the gaps in my JS knowledge!

Definitely a beginner or intro book. I read through the whole thing in a little over an hour, a testament of being easy to follow but also being extremely short. One thing I didn't like (as others have mentioned) was the continual shout-outs to the other books in the series. If the author's goal was to whet the taste buds of the reader and tempt them into buying the rest of the series, he's certainly committed. Granted, even from the title of this book it is clear it was made to be entry-level reading material. The author did make me chuckle in the Preface with a clear call-out to another well known JavaScript book implying that even the title was degrading to the power and perception of the language.For beginners or people new to JavaScript, I would recommend it. It covers all the necessities to get someone "Up & Going" for lack of better words. For those with knowledge in other languages, the author does highlight a couple key aspects of JavaScript such as closures that might help lay the basis for further reading. If you have any measurable experience with the language, most of this book will just be a review.Overall, I bought this book for $4.99. For less than the cost of a fast food meal, there's plenty of knowledge written in an inviting manner that should be easy for a beginner to follow along and learn with.