Chapter 11. Coding and Design Patterns

Now that you know all about the objects in JavaScript, mastered prototypes and inheritance, and seen some practical examples of using browser-specific objects, let's move forward, or rather, move a level up. Let's take a look at some common JavaScript patterns.

But first, what's a pattern? In short, a pattern is a good solution to a common problem. Codifying the solution into a pattern makes it repeatable as well.

Sometimes, when you're facing a new programming problem, you may recognize right away that you've previously solved another, suspiciously similar problem. In such cases, it's worth isolating this class of problems and searching for a common solution. A pattern is a proven and reusable solution (or an approach to a solution) to a class of problems.

There are cases where a pattern is nothing more than an idea or a name. Sometimes, just using a name helps you think more clearly about a problem. Also, when...