Updated: Getting started with jQuery (the hard and fast approach)

So the time has come for you to get started with jQuery. If you’re reading this, I doubt you need an introduction. Here’s what you need to get on the fast-track to jQuery happiness…

  1. Download the latest jQuery framework from jQuery.com. It comes in two flavors – development, and production which is a compact version to keep your pageload time down. Unless you’re intending to tinker with jQuery internals (unlikely), you can go ahead and download the production version.
  2. Download and print out the latest visual jQuery cheat sheet (or the original jQuery cheat sheet) to help you along your way.
  3. Install the latest version of Firefox (no, Internet Explorer 7/8 does NOT cut it for front-end development) and then install the Firebug add-on and FireQuery add-on.
  4. If you’re using Visual Studio, download and add the VSDOC to make IntelliSense work. Oh, and if you’re an ASP.NET developer, you’ll probably find this article useful.
  5. Add a jQuery reference to your web pages. Assuming you’ve added the jquery-1.3.2.js file to your /scripts folder, you should have something like this in your page <head />… 
    <script type="text/javascript" src="/scripts/jquery-1.3.2.js"></script>
  6. At this point you’re all set to go experimenting. To get a leg-up, you should probably visit jQueryList.com where there’s a massive list of existing jQuery add-ons! And here’s a fantastic list of lightbox/modal window type add-ons. And finally, don’t miss the jQueryUI – arguably one of the coolest add-ons. The default namespace is $
  7. Use Twitter? Follow @jquery for the latest news, and @pupunzi who tweets about cool jQuery-related stuff.