A Detailed Guide to Advanced HTML5 APIs

This book was organized by the Xiongdilian Education team and co-authored by Gao Luofeng, Hu Hongyun, and Liu Tao. It is built around the goal of "using HTML5 technology to rapidly build cross-platform mobile apps" and comprises 17 chapters, broadly divided into three parts. Part One lays the groundwork in fundamentals and approach: Chapter 1, "An Overview of HTML5," discusses the pros and cons of native versus hybrid apps, compares mobile websites with native apps, and introduces a Web API–centered, component-based, automated build approach; Chapter 2 uses the bMap JavaScript API to demonstrate geolocation services, including applying for a key, adding location controls, and examples for walking, driving, transit routes, and local search. Part Two focuses on core HTML5 APIs: Web Storage, including setItem, getItem, key, removeItem, and clear, with a slideshow example; Canvas drawing, from rectangle diagonals, circles, and rectangles to drawing a clock; WebSocket, contrasting HTTP sessions and building a chat room case; FileReader for reading text and image files; and the drag-and-drop API, implementing list and file drag-and-drop. Part Three turns to hybrid mobile development: setting up and installing Apache Cordova (PhoneGap), configuring JDK, Android Studio, and the SDK, debugging on Android and Apple devices, and topical APIs including flexbox layout, Cordova event handling, geolocation, device orientation, multimedia, the built-in browser, database storage, and Device Motion. The book is example-driven throughout and emphasizes "drawing inferences from every example," making it suitable for readers with a foundation in JavaScript and HTML5 who are preparing to enter mobile hybrid development.