Pro TypeScript: Application-Scale JavaScript Development

JavaScript is everywhere, both as a pure language and in popular libraries like Angular, jQuery and Knockout, but users of modern object-oriented languages like Java and C# often find JavaScript frustrating to use and hard to extend to large-scale applications. TypeScript is an innovative open source language from Microsoft that combines powerful language features and enhanced tooling support with the key attractions of JavaScript as a flexible, dynamic language that can run in any browser and on any operating system. Pro TypeScript tells you everything you need to know about this exciting new language and how to use it in your applications.

Starting with an introduction to the language and its features, the book takes you through some of the major features of TypeScript in depth, from working with the type system through object-orientation to understanding the runtime and the TypeScript compiler. The book then covers some of the factors you need to consider when running a TypeScript application in the browser, including interacting with the DOM, making asynchronous requests, and working with useful browser APIs, followed by a demonstration of server-side TypeScript using the popular Node.js framework.

Because TypeScript compiles to plain JavaScript, exception handling, memory management and garbage collection can differ depending on where you run your program, so these topics get a chapter to themselves. You’ll also find out how to include popular JavaScript frameworks in your applications, so you can combine the benefits of TypeScript with some of the best JavaScript code that’s already out there waiting to be used. The final chapter gives an overview of automated testing for TypeScript applications.

Pro TypeScript offers a balanced and practical guide to a language that will transform your experience of JavaScript development.

What you’ll learn

• The key TypeScript language features
• How to work with the TypeScript type system
• How to transfer your object-orientation skills to TypeScript
• Useful JavaScript patterns and features that work well with TypeScript
• How to consume existing JavaScript libraries in your TypeScript program
• How to run TypeScript in a web browser or on a server

Who this book is for

Pro Typescript is for the professional application developer writing applications to run on JavaScript engines in browsers or on web servers. To get the most out of this book, you should be familiar with object-oriented programming in a modern language such as C# or Java. The techniques shown will build on your existing object-oriented programming skills and show you how to transfer them to your TypeScript applications.

About the Author

Steve Fenton has worked on large-scale JavaScript applications for over ten years, from online trading portals to cloud contact centers to health care decision support. He has been a vocal supporter of TypeScript since its release and wrote the first book on the TypeScript language in October 2012. As well as working full time in the health care industry, Steve has had an academic renaissance, first completing a national certificate in psychology and then enrolling in a distance learning course at Harvard.