After the browser receives the HTML document (together with the embedded images and objects), the browser is on its own. It does not interact with the web server until next HTTP request. The HTML we learnt permits only static pages. In this section of the course, we learn how to add life to HTML page through scripting.

I wrote them for learning the basics of scripting HTML control and layer.

• HTML control testing page
• window object
• frame object
• HTML layer testing page
• Clip and overflow test page
• Event test page
• ActiveX control scripting

Basic scripting: Javascript / JScript

The most popular scripting language in browser is JavaScript, invented by Netscape. It's available in both IE and Netscape browser. After studying the JavaScript language, we learn how to script the built-in HTML controls (e.g. text box, button, radio button) and browser object (e.g. windows, frames, document and history). We will apply these skills for client-side validation.

• Website Abstraction - a comprehensive resource site on Javascript. There are tutorials for beginner and more advanced users.
• Javascript documentation at Netscape
• Javascript debugger 1.1 of Netscape
• The ECMA script standard - read this if you're really serious about the language
• DMOZ entries for Javascript -

Basic scripting: VBScript

Microsoft IE comes with another built-in scripting language, VBScript. This is the language commonly used in IIS's ASP. In the browser, VBScript is equally expressive and can be used anywhere you use JScript (the Microsoft dialet of JavaScript in IE).

• Microsoft scripting technology at Microsoft, includes VBScript and JScript
• Language section in Microsoft Web workshop

Dynamic HTML

A power enhancement of the 4th generation of browsers (Navigator 4+ and IE 4+) is Dynamic HTML. You can position content by absolute coordinates, move them, and hide them. One can make a very sophisticated interactive interface using them. Unfortunately, the two browsers expose the HTML document in different object model (called Document object model DOM). This makes writing cross-browser Dynamic HTML really troublesome.

• Dynamic Drive DHTML code library - Most often, you don't need to write Javascipt all on your own. Check this site and try to borrow some free javascipt snippets.
• DHTML zone - Macromedia's site about DTHML
• DHTML section in Microsoft Web workshop
• Curious Eye, DHTML page creation tutorial - an impressive DHTML tutorial that uses much DHTML
• HTML/DHTML related books in iTKnowldge - many books, can be read freely online.
• Scripter's Pad: DHTML and JavaScript tutorial
• Event handling in DHTML - good tutorial on event handling in N4 and IE4+
• JavaScript and dynamic content - how to change the content of a web page in the client-side
• SiteExperts - a developer community site with lots of articles on advanced usage of DHTML and JavaScript. You can also post questions.
• DHTML Zone in DevX - an informative sites about DHTML, with up-to-date articles and tutorials
• ASSEMBLER.ORG - hand-coded DHTML to the extreme
• K.Moriyama's homepage - some games writtin in DHTML. You can learn a lot from these samples.

DHTML, the standard way and the cross-browser way

• DMOZ entries for DOM -
• Upgrading Nav4 and IE content - a URL list in DMoz about upgrading content of Nav4 and IE to DOM
• Tutorial about DOM as supported in N6 and IE5 (DOM 1 and partial DOM 2)
  • Introduction to DOM of IE 5/NS6 in WSAstract
  • Doing DHTML the right way: Learn the W3C DOM
• Cross browser DHTML
  • Tutorial in WDVL
  • Cross browser DHTML - a tech note in Netscape
  • Dynamic Duo Cross-browser DHTML - tutorial and reference
  • HTMLGuru -
  • DMOZ listing on Cross-browser DHTML

Scripting ActiveX control and plugins

In addition to scripting the standard control in HTML, one can also script ActiveX control / plug-ins embedded in a HTML page. Conceptually, this is similar to visual programming with VB or Delphi. We also explore this view in the last part of our discussion of client-side scripting.

• The amazing ActiveX - an article about scripting ActiveX control
• Scripting with Flash 4 player - a tech note in Macromedia
• Scripting with Real Player - in RealNetwork devzone
• Windows Media Technology in MSDN - some pages there are about embedding WMT control in web pages.
• Scripting Java applet
  • Java doc in Netscape - to learn how JavaScript and Java may interact in Netscape The underlying technology is called LiveConnect.
• Build-in scriptable control in IE
• Components in IE
  • Component development (ActiveX and DHTML Scriptlets) in IE
  • As I remember, IE exposes Java applets as COM object. I think they are scriptable... finding info in MS Java page.