Use JavaScript within a webpage

JavaScript is a programming language mostly used client-side to make webpages interactive. You can create amazing webpages without JavaScript, but JavaScript opens up a whole new level of possibilities.

Within a browser, JavaScript doesn't do anything by itself. You run JavaScript from inside your HTML webpages. To call JavaScript code from within HTML, you need the <script> element. There are two ways to use script, depending on whether you're linking to an external script or embedding a script right in your webpage.

Usually, you'll be writing scripts in their own .js files. If you want to execute a .js script from your webpage, just use <script> with an src attribute pointing to the script file, using its URL:

<script src="path/to/my/script.js"></script>

You may also add JavaScript code between <script> tags rather than providing an src attribute.

<script>
  window.addEventListener("load", () => {
    console.log("This function is executed once the page is fully loaded");
  });
</script>

That's convenient when you just need a small bit of JavaScript, but if you keep JavaScript in separate files you'll find it easier to

• focus on your work
• write self-sufficient HTML
• write structured JavaScript applications

Accessibility is a major issue in any software development. JavaScript can make your website more accessible if you use it wisely, or it can become a disaster if you use scripting without care. To make JavaScript work in your favor, it's worth knowing about certain best practices for adding JavaScript:

• Make all content available as (structured) text. Rely on HTML for your content as much as possible. For example, if you've implemented a nice JavaScript progress bar, make sure to supplement it with matching text percentages inside the HTML. Likewise, your drop-down menus should be structured as unordered lists of links.

• Make all functionality accessible from the keyboard.

  • Let users Tab through all controls (e.g., links and form input) in a logical order.
  • If you use pointer events (like mouse events or touch events), duplicate the functionality with keyboard events.
  • Test your site using a keyboard only.

• Don't set nor even guess time limits. It takes extra time to navigate with the keyboard or hear content read out. You can hardly ever predict just how long it will take for users or browsers to complete a process (especially asynchronous actions such as loading resources).

• Keep animations subtle and brief with no flashing. Flashing is annoying and can cause seizures. Additionally, if an animation lasts more than a couple seconds, give the user a way to cancel it.

• Let users initiate interactions. That means, don't update content, redirect, or refresh automatically. Don't use carousels or display popups without warning.

• Have a plan B for users without JavaScript. People may have JavaScript turned off to improve speed and security, and users often face network issues that prevent loading scripts. Moreover, third-party scripts (ads, tracking scripts, browser extensions) might break your scripts.

  • At a minimum, leave a short message with <noscript> like this: <noscript>To use this site, please enable JavaScript.</noscript>
  • Ideally, replicate the JavaScript functionality with HTML and server-side scripting when possible.
  • If you're only looking for simple visual effects, CSS can often get the job done even more intuitively.
  • Since almost everybody does have JavaScript enabled, <noscript> is no excuse for writing inaccessible scripts.

• <script>
• <noscript>
• James Edwards' introduction to using JavaScript accessibly
• Accessibility guidelines from W3C