Welcome to the Treehouse Community
Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.
Looking to learn something new?
Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.
Start your free trial
Michael Plemmons
9,393 Pointsjavascript developer
I was wondering if there were companies that hire just for javascript? The reason I'm asking is because Andrew Chalkley (great teacher and obviously knows what he's doing) claims himself as a Javascript developer. From my online research about what languages to learn for front end web development, most people agree that the critical 3 for starting are HTML, CSS and Javascript. Javascript seems very extensive and I really enjoy it, but it seems more extensive than HTML and CSS combined. Are there people out there that write HTML and CSS and hire someone out to add the interactivity with Javascript?
3 Answers
eck
43,038 PointsA JavaScript developer is often (but not limited to being) a front end developer who is specialized in creating interactive web applications. To do this job the developer would likely require a moderate level of proficiency in HTML, CSS and more. There is not really a set definition on the role or the skills required (Many job titles in this industry lack specificity in terms of what the role is)
I would encourage you to look at job postings for "JavaScript Developer" and "JavaScript Engineer" to see what skills are are most in demand. This gives you the best idea of what the average employer is actually looking for.
Patrick McKinney
13,151 PointsI work in the GIS (geographic data and maps) profession. Some of my responsibilities have included building interactive web maps (using leaflet.js) and customizing templates created by ESRI.
I've used HTML and CSS to create the skeleton structure of the web maps and to customize the colors/fonts/etc of the ESRI apps. I've also used JavaScript to add in custom functionality to the ESRI apps such as a toggable legend.
In my experience, all three languages go hand in hand.
Jeremy Castanza
12,081 PointsI think it comes down to what you want to do. If you're looking to build certain types of applications, there are other programming languages that were designed for that purpose.
While Javascript is definitely going through a bit of a Renaissance, it's original intention was to be able to work with front-end websites. If you're wanting to build or work with any type of application that is accessible through a web browser or enhance a website's functionality, than you'll definitely want to learn Javascript.
In many instances, Javascript is now becoming a way to improve (often by hacking) more robust applications. In this instance, it complements rather than replaces those applications.
If you're wanting to build other types of applications that run natively on a phone or have other robust/enterprise level functionality, you may want to consider other languages.
Nevertheless, Javascript is definitely a good starting point to being able to learn basic principles of programming since a lot of these principles can transfer to other languages.