If you build IBM Lotus Domino Web applications, you probably use JavaScript to make your pages more interactive. JavaScript gives you a tremendous amount of control over how your Web applications look and feel. Like any language, however, JavaScript code can quickly become complicated if you’re doing more than the most basic tasks. It’s at this point that you should consider using jQuery.

jQuery is a free, open-source JavaScript library you can use to help build your Domino applications. I’ll show you how to take advantage of this terrific tool, which can help make even complicated work surprisingly easy.

Maybe you’re like me and can’t get excited about the idea of incorporating outside code into your applications. Or, maybe tools like DoJo have disappointed you because, despite their promise, their overhead requirements slow your applications. This is why when Jim Knight of LavaTech suggested I look at jQuery, I smiled politely, thanked him, and then promptly forgot about it.

Big mistake.