Who is the author and why did he write zjrJS? Why did he publish the documentation and test cases?
Used zjrJS Version:
Stable Minified version 20141202t2322 of zjrJS.
Who are you?
André E. Veltstra, father, software architect, systems analyst, innovator, programmer / hacker / developer, database modeler and optimizer, musician, music composer.
Where do you work?
Currently (2013): for OmegaJunior Consultancy as a Renaissance Man, for AllPaths as a community manager, and for Philant as executive assistant. Until 2012 I worked for Colours, the Internet Company.
Why did you write zjrJS?
When I started my own in 2007, a lot of other cross-browser libraries were being created, notably jQuery and Prototype.js. My problem with those javascript libraries was that they were too big and too complex
I just needed something to reduce the amount of code I wrote, leaving standardised checks to the library. I needed something I could render atomic, meaning I could pick and choose the functions any particular project needed, reducing the filesize of the library without compromising its integrity.
Apart from that I was interested in the inner workings of the javascript interpreters in the browsers. When one relies on a cross-browser library, that aspect is the one that gets hidden. Though it is what I sought in my day-to-day software development, I also wanted to learn about it. Writing zjrJS helped me achieve all those goals.
Why did you start publishing the documentation?
ZjrJS made it into personal and client projects. That means other people will have to use it and possibly maintain it. Proper documentation makes that impossible.
Besides, I don't always remember every detail about the API myself. Instead of perusing the interface coding, I can now read my own explanations.
How did you decide on the content structure of the articles?
I've read quite a bit of technical documentation on various programming topics. A lot I found incomplete. Thus the information available about zjrJS is exactly what I want to read myself:
If you want to know more about any topic, file a comment at its article page.
Why did you create and publish test cases?
I want to provide complete transparency: this is how you are supposed to use it, and this is the expected result. "Does or doesn't it work?" - the test cases answer that question. No guessing needed.
The test cases can be used by web authors to check the correct workings of new releases of the zjrJS API. Developers of a competitive javascript library can use them to compare their own versions. Browser vendors can use them to check compatibility.
Basically the test cases reduce the learning curve.
André E. Veltstra, father, software architect, systems analyst, innovator, programmer / hacker / developer, database modeler and optimizer, musician, music composer.
Where do you work?
Currently (2013): for OmegaJunior Consultancy as a Renaissance Man, for AllPaths as a community manager, and for Philant as executive assistant. Until 2012 I worked for Colours, the Internet Company.
Why did you write zjrJS?
When I started my own in 2007, a lot of other cross-browser libraries were being created, notably jQuery and Prototype.js. My problem with those javascript libraries was that they were too big and too complex
I just needed something to reduce the amount of code I wrote, leaving standardised checks to the library. I needed something I could render atomic, meaning I could pick and choose the functions any particular project needed, reducing the filesize of the library without compromising its integrity.
Apart from that I was interested in the inner workings of the javascript interpreters in the browsers. When one relies on a cross-browser library, that aspect is the one that gets hidden. Though it is what I sought in my day-to-day software development, I also wanted to learn about it. Writing zjrJS helped me achieve all those goals.
Why did you start publishing the documentation?
ZjrJS made it into personal and client projects. That means other people will have to use it and possibly maintain it. Proper documentation makes that impossible.
Besides, I don't always remember every detail about the API myself. Instead of perusing the interface coding, I can now read my own explanations.
How did you decide on the content structure of the articles?
I've read quite a bit of technical documentation on various programming topics. A lot I found incomplete. Thus the information available about zjrJS is exactly what I want to read myself:
- what is it called,
- what does it do,
- what does it return,
- what are its dependencies,
- how do I use it,
- and please give me a non-trivial example.
If you want to know more about any topic, file a comment at its article page.
Why did you create and publish test cases?
I want to provide complete transparency: this is how you are supposed to use it, and this is the expected result. "Does or doesn't it work?" - the test cases answer that question. No guessing needed.
The test cases can be used by web authors to check the correct workings of new releases of the zjrJS API. Developers of a competitive javascript library can use them to compare their own versions. Browser vendors can use them to check compatibility.
Basically the test cases reduce the learning curve.
