Javascript has been around for a quarter of a century. That’s a long time for such technologies. During this time, it has come a long way and has become a powerful tool for the IT industry. In terms of popularity, the language is in the group of leaders. At the same time it is considered accessible to the mastering, friendly to beginners. Consider its main advantages.
The name Javascript itself didn’t appear right away. At first it was called Mocha, then the term Livescript appeared. It was much more succinct to express its essence. At that time browsers were actively adopting support for a new, promising language – Java. That’s when it was decided to rename Livescript to Javascript. There are similarities between the languages, primarily in syntax. But in essence they are very different tools.
In 2015, a version of ES6 (ES2015) was released. This event is considered a breakthrough in the development of Javascript. New standards and features appeared. For example – constants.
The code became more rational, the idea of “write less – do more” was implemented.
Javascript is a dynamic high-level scripting language. It is characterized by multi-paradigm. It supports functional, imperative, event-driven styles. This language is mostly used for creating interactive web pages and applications.
Areas of Usage, Scope
Invariably high interest in Javascript is confirmed by special international rankings. These indexes are analytical data based on:
queries on programming languages in search engines;
questions on professional forums;
projects implemented with the use of some or other technologies;
vacancies for programmers from the largest recruiting agencies.
PYPL (Popularity of Programming Language). Authoritative rating, based on data from the largest search engine Google SE. Javascript is in the top three.
Stack Overflow. This index analyzes the number of questions on languages and tools in professional communities. Javascript is the absolute leader here.
W3Techs – World Wide Web Technology Surveys. The basis of the indexes is the number of web projects that use certain technologies. Select the client interfaces section. Here we can see that Javascript has no rivals: it’s the main interface.
Right in the Frontend area, there’s a lot of Javascript-based developments (components). About 25-30 libraries and frameworks are most actively used. These ready-made templates and solutions for standard tasks (with variations) save a lot of time. They simplify the process of web-development, speeding it up, reducing the cost of projects. The most popular of them are probably the following:
Javascript is also used to create mobile applications, in server (backend) development, in desktop (such as office) programs. The worldwide web development boom and the trend toward greater interactivity are contributing to a phenomenal growth in the language’s popularity.
Advantages and disadvantages
Javascript is not popular by accident, but because of its undeniable advantages.
- Irreplaceability for web development. Scripts support by all popular browsers; full integration with page makeup (HTML+CSS) and backend.
- Speed and performance. Javascript allows partial processing of web pages on the user’s computer without requests to the server. This saves time and traffic and reduces the load on the server.
- Powerful infrastructure (ecosystem). For the first 10 years, there was none of this. Then, the number of out-of-the-box solutions in the public domain increased so much, that working with Javascript and its frameworks became a pleasure.
- Simplicity and rationality of use. A simple task can be solved in 5 minutes, you don’t need to do extra work. For complex tasks there are options for solutions, you can choose the best, adapt.
- User-friendly user interfaces. Filling out forms, selecting actions, activating buttons, checking input, responding to mouseover/clicks, etc. This gives an amazing level of usability.
- Ease of mastering. Perhaps it’s a matter of habit. Code can seem complicated at first, but you quickly get used to its syntax, logic. The display of actions adds a great deal of enthusiasm.
Like any programming language, Javascript has some disadvantages (limitations).
- There is no ability to read and download files. This is a limitation of functionality on the client side. The main reason is security considerations.
- Unstrict typing and free interpretation. Language ignores obvious inconsistencies. Different interpretation of data. There is no early detection of errors. All bugs are detected at runtime.
- There is no support for remote access. This is why the language cannot be used for networked applications. Because of this, Javascript isn’t even considered a full-fledged programming language.
- Accessibility to intruders. It’s very easy to embed a piece of malicious code into a free scripting language, which might do harm to the user. There is only hope for an anti-virus and a firewall.