Sidebar: Dot and bracket notation

- Quick sidebar,…so far you've seen me use dot notation…to gain access to properties inside objects.…First, we mentioned objects, say course.…We put a dot in to tell JavaScript…we are looking for a property inside course…and then we just list out property, title.…We can also use bracket notation…to do the exact same thing.…Again we list out the object first, course.…

Then we set up a square bracket…and inside the square bracket we quote the title.…This gives us the same result,…the property inside the object.…So why do we have these two different notations…to do the same thing?…It has a very specific use.…In some cases,…when you work with objects they come from somewhere else,…let's say PHP or they're just generated from a data set.…And the property names may be a little odd.…

For instance, they may have operators inside them.…So an object that I've had to work with previously…had this notation for a property, WP:image.…Now if I try to use dot notation to get at this property…something weird happens.…So I say course.WP.…