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Thank you Mike for taking the time to write this beautiful explanation (and idan for posting :)).

I was completely mystified on seeing the D3.js code examples, and didn't really grok what was going on behind the scenes. This helps, a LOT !

For me this has been one of the hardest stepping stones to being productive with D3. Its been a real mind bending experience creating elements in this way. I'm still not as productive as I'd like to be, but thats okay cause I'm learning.

This is definitely the core idea in D3, the way data is joined to the DOM. This explanation is the shortest, clearest one I've read yet.

On a related note, does anyone have any recommended d3.js tutorials for going from advanced beginner to intermediate level?

Scott Murray has been developing a wonderful series of tutorials: http://alignedleft.com/tutorials/d3/

I expect he'll tackle more advanced topics as the series continues.

D3: Thinking with Joins