> We can also attribute the origin of this “JS revolution” to the release of ECMAScript 6
I'd disagree with this one. I feel that node+npm is the real launching point of the "JS revolution." Because it did something that hadn't come before. It allowed for modular, reusable code. At least once bundlers were available on the platform, AMD options and Browserify in particular. Which pre-dates and informs ES6 Module syntax, which still doesn't have very broad adoption. Though a lot of source uses ESM style while still relying on node/cjs convensions, which will probably adapt over time.
I think it largely comes down to a few different bits. Interest in more interactive engineering efforts on the client-side combined with in-language tooling that Node itself brought. Like a blacksmith, JS developers can actually make their own tools. npm allows unlimited sharing of these tools for reuse and optimization. Github rised around the same time and allowed for greater collaboration than ever before. In the end it has been a near perfect storm, so to speak. This has all lead to JS as "the one language to rule them all."
JS is not the best language at anything imho. But it's good enough for almost everything and thanks to npm and node, it's often the fastest to done option. These are the reasons why I will almost always push for the first version of everything be in JS/Node.
tracker1 1850 days ago. link 1 point ▲ ▼