Your First JavaScript Program: Hello, World!
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Introduction
JavaScript, an omnipresent programming language in web development, allows developers to create dynamic and interactive websites by manipulating the content of the webpage in real time. Writing your first JavaScript program is a rite of passage, and traditionally, this means creating a "Hello, World!" script.
Writing Your First JavaScript Script
Creating a JavaScript program to display "Hello, World!" on a webpage is straightforward and introduces you to the basic syntax and structure of the language.
Step 1: HTML Setup
Create an HTML file, which will be used to run your JavaScript code. Let's name it index.html.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<title>Hello, World!</title>
</head>
<body>
<script>
// Your JavaScript will go here
</script>
</body>
</html>
Step 2: Implementing JavaScript
Within the <script> tags in your HTML file, you can write the JavaScript code to display "Hello, World!" in an alert box.
<script>
alert('Hello, World!');
</script>
When you open your index.html file in a web browser, an alert box will appear displaying the message "Hello, World!".
Step 3: Displaying Text on the Webpage
Alternatively, you can also display the "Hello, World!" message directly on the webpage using the document.write() method.
<script>
document.write('Hello, World!');
</script>
This script will write the text "Hello, World!" directly to the webpage.
Understanding the Code
alert('Hello, World!');: This line of code creates an alert box that displays a message. The message to be displayed is enclosed in parentheses and single quotes.document.write('Hello, World!');: This line of code writes a string of text to the document, which is displayed on the webpage.
Moving Forward
The "Hello, World!" program is a simple yet crucial step into the world of JavaScript programming. From here, you'll delve deeper into various concepts like variables, operators, functions, and objects, gradually enhancing your skills and understanding of JavaScript.