Packt has today announced details of Matt Butcher’s new Drupal 6 JavaScript and jQuery book, which is scheduled for release in December. The book is being released as Packt’s first RAW (Read as we Write) book, which are designed as the most immediate and cutting-edge way to buy a Packt book. Generally available 4-6 months before the book is published, buying a RAW book gives you the opportunity to gain immediate access to content and share in the editorial process of producing a book.

A RAW version of a Packt book is just that; an unedited and unpolished version of the final product. As soon as the author has written a new chapter, Packt will add it to the eBook and notify customers who can download it immediately.

The Drupal 6 JavaScript and jQuery book will be published in December. Written by Matt Butcher, author of Learning Drupal 6 Module Development amongst others, it will give users the keys to the toolbox, detailing how to use Drupal's JavaScript libraries to make modules and themes more dynamic, interactive and responsive, and add effects to make Drupal websites explode into life.

This book is written for themers and module developers interested in building richer front ends with Drupal 6 and JavaScript. As the title implies, jQuery is a central topic for the book. So are the core JavaScript features in Drupal 6, like Behaviors, theming in JavaScript, using the JavaScript translation system, and incorporating Ajax technologies.

The book is project-based. Each chapter begins with an introduction to a new topic, and then short projects illustrate aspects of Drupal's JavaScript capabilities. Using JavaScript in themes is covered extensively. For more advanced developers, later chapters cover the process of creating a JavaScript-centered module.

Along with the JavaScript, HTML, and CSS one would expect to find in a book like this, light PHP Templates knowledge is beneficial. But you won't need to be a PHP developer to use this book.

Here are a couple of the projects in the book:

• Create a simple HTML editor that attaches to Drupal text areas.
• Turn the Drupal RSS feed into a web clips feature using AJAX.
• Using jQuery effects, rotate through sticky nodes on your front page.
• Add real-time comment notifications.
• Add templates to the JavaScript theming system -- using pure HTML as the template language!

For more information, please visit http://www.packtpub.com/drupal-6-javascript-and-jquery/book