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<CONTENT TITLE="Meta-FAQ meta-questions" ID="meta" NUMID="1">

<P>

This is the meta-FAQ for comp.lang.javascript. The latest

version is available at <URL>http://PointedEars.de/faq/</URL> in HTML form.

</P>

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<P>

Each day, one section of the <em>original</em> comp.lang.javascript FAQ, <VER/>,

is posted for review and questions, and as a reminder that the FAQ

is available.

</P>

-->

<P>

For additional explanation and detail relating to some aspects

of the FAQ, please see the

<URL LINKTEXT="FAQ Notes">notes/</URL>.

It has been provided separately to avoid increasing the size of

the FAQ to a point where it would be unreasonable to post it to

the group.

</P>

<P>

Code examples in this FAQ use <URL LINKTEXT="JSDoc Toolkit"

>https://code.google.com/p/jsdoc-toolkit/</URL> comments.

</P>

<CONTENT TITLE="Why this FAQ?" ID="why" NUMID="2_0">

<P>

This document is work in progress, intended to replace

the comp.lang.javascript FAQ that has gone unmaintained

since 2010-10-08 CE.

</P>

</CONTENT>

<CONTENT TITLE="Which newsgroups deal with javascript?" ID="newsgroups" NUMID="2_1">

<P>

The official Big 8 Usenet newsgroup dealing with javascript is

<NEWSGROUP>comp.lang.javascript</NEWSGROUP>.

Some "language" hierarchies also have *.comp.lang.javascript groups.

</P>

<P>

c.l.js is an unmoderated newsgroup.

</P>

</CONTENT>

<CONTENT TITLE="What questions are on-topic for comp.lang.javascript?" ID="appropriateQuestions" NUMID="2_2">

<P>

The comp.lang.javascript newsgroup deals with ECMAScript

languages, so any questions about JavaScript or JScript are

welcome. However, the majority of questions sent to this group

relates to javascript in a web browser. If you are experiencing

issues with a particular browser, or the host is not a browser

at all, please make this information clear.

</P>

<P>

Javascript and Java are two completely different languages.

Java questions should be asked in one of the comp.lang.java.*

newsgroups; they are not appropriate for c.l.js (as Java and

javascript are distinct programming languages with only

superficial similarities due to sharing a C-like syntax and

some of the characters in their names).

</P>

<P>

Questions dealing with other scripting languages, such as

VBScript, PerlScript or CGI scripting are also off-topic,

as are HTML-only or CSS-only questions.

</P>

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<P>

Questions about the design of various javascript libraries are

appropriate; questions on how to <EM>use</EM> such libraries

are not. Check <URL LINKTEXT="c.l.js FAQ Resources"

>http://jibbering.comindex.html#libraryResources</URL> or search the web.

</P>

-->

<P>

Questions that are specific to Microsoft's JScript may also

be appropriately asked at:

<NEWSGROUP>microsoft.public.scripting.jscript</NEWSGROUP>

</P>

<P>

The comp.lang.javascript newsgroup charter is included in

<URL>faq_notes/cljs_charter.html</URL>.

</P>

</CONTENT>

<CONTENT TITLE="What should I do before posting to comp.lang.javascript?" ID="posting" NUMID="2_3">

<P>

Before posting to c.l.js, you should read this document.

You should also check the <URL LINKTEXT="Resources section">#onlineResources</URL>.

</P>

<LIST TYPE="UL" TITLE="How to Ask a Question" ID="ask">

<LI>State your question clearly and concisely.</LI>

<LI>Use the Subject: line to show the type of problem you have but

include the question in the body as well.</LI>

<LI>For a more detailed explanation of formatting, see

&quot;<URL LINKTEXT="Posting Questions and Replies to comp.lang.javascript">notes/posting/</URL>&quot;.</LI>

</LIST>

<LIST TYPE="UL" TITLE="Replying" ID="reply">

<LI>Quote only relevant parts of earlier messages, and add your

comments below each quoted section

(<URL LINKTEXT="FYI28/RFC1855">http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1855.txt</URL>).</LI>

<LI>Link to specific sections of the FAQ that are relevant.</LI>

<LI>Avoid being unnecessarily rude, but do not complain about other rude posts.</LI>

<LI>Don't quote signatures.</LI>

</LIST>

<LIST TYPE="UL" TITLE="Posting Code" ID="postCode">

<LI>

Remove everything that does not contribute to the problem (images,

markup, other scripts, etc).

</LI>

<LI>Validate the HTML and CSS <URL>http://validator.w3.org/</URL>,

<URL>http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/</URL>.</LI>

<LI>Make sure the code is executable as transmitted.</LI>

<LI>Format lines to 72 characters; indent with 2-4 spaces (not tabs).</LI>

<LI>State what you expect the code to do.</LI>

<LI>Mention the platforms, browsers, and versions.</LI>

<LI>See also the <URL LINKTEXT="FAQ section on debugging">#debugging</URL>.</LI>

<LI>Post in plain-text only. Do not encode it. Do not attach files.</LI>

<LI>If the code is more than about 100 lines, provide a URL in addition.</LI>

<LI>Do not multi-post; cross-post if necessary

(<URL LINKTEXT="Wikipedia description">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-post</URL>).</LI>

</LIST>

<LIST TYPE="UL" TITLE="What Not to Post" ID="doNotPost">

<LI>Do not post job postings. Job postings should go to

an appropriate regional jobs group.</LI>

<LI>Do not post copyright material without permission

from the copyright holder.</LI>

</LIST>

<P>

Relevant announcements are welcome, but no more often than once

per major release, as a short link to the product's webpage.

</P>

</CONTENT>

<CONTENT TITLE="Why was my post not answered?" ID="noAnswer" NUMID="2_4">

<P>This could be for several reasons:</P>

<UL>

<LI>It was a variation of a frequently asked question and was

therefore ignored by everyone.</LI>

<LI>Nobody knows the answer.</LI>

<LI>The person with the answer has not seen the post.</LI>

<LI>It might not be possible to do what you want to do but perhaps

readers of c.l.js are reluctant to answer your post in the negative

when they are not convinced that it cannot be done.</LI>

<LI>The question was not asked clearly enough, or did not included

enough information to be answered.</LI>

<LI>The questioner did not realise the need to read the group, for a

few days, to see the answers posted there.</LI>

<LI>You ignored the <URL LINKTEXT="section on posting">#posting</URL></LI>

</UL>

<p>If it is not one of these, then after a few days consider

reposting after checking

<URL>http://groups.google.com/group/comp.lang.javascript/topics</URL>

for replies. Make sure the post is phrased well, and everything

needed to answer is correct, and the subject is appropriate.</p>

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