What's the difference between JavaScript and JScript?

Just different names for what is really ECMAScript. John Resig has a good explanation.

Here's the full version breakdown:

  • IE 6-7 support JScript 5 (which is equivalent to ECMAScript 3, JavaScript 1.5)
  • IE 8 supports JScript 6 (which is equivalent to ECMAScript 3, JavaScript 1.5 - more bug fixes over JScript 5)
  • Firefox 1.0 supports JavaScript 1.5 (ECMAScript 3 equivalent)
  • Firefox 1.5 supports JavaScript 1.6 (1.5 + Array Extras + E4X + misc.)
  • Firefox 2.0 supports JavaScript 1.7 (1.6 + Generator + Iterators + let + misc.)
  • Firefox 3.0 supports JavaScript 1.8 (1.7 + Generator Expressions + Expression Closures + misc.)
  • The next version of Firefox will support JavaScript 1.9 (1.8 + To be determined)
  • Opera supports a language that is equivalent to ECMAScript 3 + Getters and Setters + misc.
  • Safari supports a language that is equivalent to ECMAScript 3 + Getters and Setters + misc.

As far as I can tell, two things:

  1. ActiveXObject constructor
  2. The idiom f(x) = y, which is roughly equivalent to f[x] = y.

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jscript

JScript is the Microsoft dialect of the ECMAScript scripting language specification.

JavaScript (the Netscape/Mozilla implementation of the ECMA specification), JScript, and ECMAScript are very similar languages. In fact the name "JavaScript" is often used to refer to ECMAScript or JScript.

Microsoft uses the name JScript for its implementation to avoid trademark issues (JavaScript is a trademark of Oracle Corporation).