I\'m a server-side junkie, and by that I mean I spend time writing code that\'s

Question

I'm a server-side junkie, and by that I mean I spend time writing code that's not visible to anyone.

I'm interested in rounding out my skillset and becoming more self-sufficient with writing full-stack webapps.

But, I find it difficult to work with the the sort of 'organicity' of client-side html tech.

I know there is no substitute for time and experience, but if an experienced client-side dev was starting over from scratch, what would he read/do?

EDIT: an example of an answer that I'd give for server-side:

Learn the best practices of the language you're working in, eg. for java, read 'effective java'. Learn fundamentals of algorithms, application design concepts that are useful in any language, two good sources are 'design patterns', 'SICP'.

I'm not looking for: 'Learn CSS, HTML and Javascript.'

I am looking for something like:

Intent, rationale, concepts of X are well-explained in Y. Framework Z is a good example and the source-code is enlightening and well-documented.

Explanation / Answer

CSS and HTML are trivial to learn. A competent programmer can pick up the syntax in 15 minutes and learn the basics of HTML in another 30.

It is very important to know and understand the box model. This is the method that the browser uses to render the DOM. That said, you should probably at the very least read the wikipedia page for the DOM.

Next, learn JavaScript. I would start with JavaScript: The Good Parts. I would also learn to use and understand jQuery - it is the most ubiquitous JavaScript library for a reason. You'll also need to understand the basics of the Module pattern, and understand how RequireJS works and why it is so useful.

Once you know those basics, you'll want to start learning about things like repaints, maybe the canvas tag, etc.

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