I like JavaScript. I use it every day – often for more than ten hours per day. I also think that some of the best innovations of the web development community have come from the JavaScript community.
But there’s a problem.
Here on YouTube, I’m seeing tidal waves of JavaScript developers putting out ‘point and click’ tutorials where fairly elaborate apps are being built at a remarkable speed. A speed that even I find impossible to keep up with!
I think it’s time we had an honest conversation about this. Let me be clear, I’m not having a go at JavaScript as a language or even developers who – like me – happen to use JavaScript. In this video, I’m putting forward the case that a certain kind of developer has emerged that has turned JavaScript into web development’s new WordPress.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with that. If that’s what you’re into then three cheers for you. However, there is one little fly in the ointment. Isn’t there?
You see, the moment you put the command line interface out of the picture it becomes rather apparent that the Millennial JS developers (and I am looking for a better phrase!) are basically playing the same sport as the WordPress developers. By that, I mean they are basically just installing third party stuff on a massive scale, bungling it together and then calling themselves ‘developers’. The real problem for the Millennial JS developers have is that WordPress is rather better at THAT kind of development. If ‘point and click’ is the way forward then I think WordPress is fifty steps ahead of everyone!
What’s NOT an opinion is that third-party library dependency never ends well. I stand before you as somebody who is now being forced to re-record about 400 videos because some third-party library developer either couldn’t be bothered renewing their domain or decided to suddenly rewrite everything.
Third-party library dependency is one of the biggest problems in web development today. It’s a type of development that gives a quick dopamine hit to those who are involved, but ALWAYS ends badly.
On this channel, I teach REAL web development – not how to bungle third-party libraries together. There’s a big difference and intelligent developers respect the difference.
source