JavaScript is a scripting language created by Netscape Communications and Sun Microsystems JavaScript is based loosely on Sun's Java programming language. JavaScript is not an alternative to Java, but a complement to it. Since JavaScript can't be used to create applets, it's more limited than Java, but it has advantages as well. JavaScript is often faster to load, and easier to use for small tasks, such as generating moving text and performing simple calculations.

At a technical level, JavaScript and Java actually share little beyond the similarity in their names. But since they often produce a similar result, for the typical user many of the differences are unimportant. One meaningful distinction is that scripts created with JavaScript are incorporated into the HTML code itself. The code of a Java applet is not, although Web content created with either tool will appear in your browser. Beyond this distinction, it's only important to remember that JavaScript and Java are not the same thing.

Related Questions:

• What is Java?
• What are Java applets?
• Does my Sympatico software work with Java and JavaScript?

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