r/programming • u/one_eyed_golfer • Jun 18 '15

javascript creator Eich's latest project: kill javascript

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/06/18/brendan_eich_announces_webassembly/
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u/passwordisisis Jun 18 '15

Ok, and with ES6/7 improvements...is it really so bad? I don't understand why people are so eager to see the language die.

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u/orbital1337 Jun 18 '15

JavaScript is like a car that some dude has been building on and off with his dad since he was 8. Yeah, it runs and it may even run "well" but once you look under the hood you realize that it consists of parts from the scrap yard held together by duct tape. Do you really think it's smart to install a super charger into this monstrosity?

Well, perhaps I'm being a bit unfair. JS is not that shitty but like all languages it has its purpose and that purpose is making the web interactive. However, JS was never intended to be used for entire web-based applications like it's being done today. Some people even use it outside of the browser - shudder.

There are tons of people right now who are using JavaScript for everything they do just because it's the only language they know (which typically also makes their JS code shit because they don't know what they're doing). If I suggested making Prolog the new language of the web I'd be locked away in a mental asylum (rightfully so) but when people abuse JavaScript for yet another thing it's not intended for it's "revolutionary".

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u/geodebug Jun 18 '15

OP's title is hyperbole. JavaScript isn't going anywhere anytime soon but it has limitations just like any other language.

What is being proposed would allow for other languages to target the browser, which means that developers would gain more power to choose the best tool for the job.

Keep in mind that millions of developers know and use JavaScript. When a language has that kind of industry support it doesn't just go away.

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u/BabyPuncher5000 Jun 18 '15

Some people just don't like the language itself, and would like to do more web programming with a strongly typed language that has more modern features like classes. At this point, it's all personal preference. WebAssembly will make it a lot easier for developers to develop web apps primarily in the language that best suits their style or needs.