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Yes, the Javascript world is quickly evolving both on the front end and backend, and of course that can be exhausting but I have to disagree with both conclusio

Yes, the Javascript world is quickly evolving both on the front end and backend, and of course that can be exhausting but I have to disagree with both conclusions that (a) this means the tech is immature, and (b) the community's readiness to make changes is "holding it back". The js world is very unique in its ability to evolve quickly and things have improved massively over the last few years. Now, apart from the churn itself and precisely because of that rapid evolution, front end and backend development in javascript is amazing compared to most other options (especially on the front end). So while you do have to be realistic about the cost of the evolving ecosystem, it is just a tradeoff for rapid progress, not a flaw. If you crave stability, agreed, this rollercoaster probably isn't your ride. But the evolution of node, the emergence of react/redux, es6, etc is amazing and beautiful IMO and I'm totally enjoying every bit of it compared to the staid mediocrity of my Rails, C/C++, and Java history.

rimantas 10y ago
The problem I see that in this case "evolving" looks suspiciously like running in circles without going anywhere.
- royjacobs 10y ago
  A good example mentioned in the article is the "npm scripts -> grunt -> gulp -> npm scripts" evolution in best practices for building.
Corrado 10y ago
I'm not saying that Node.js is bad and shouldn't be used. Rails was in the exact same boat several years ago; everything was changing so quickly that new people on the scene had to work pretty hard to keep up. Being on the other side of that process with Node.js, I can now understand the Rails newbie's frustration. :) If you are comfortable with the constant change and evolution in a platform/language/framework, then by all means continue to use it. Just don't disparage people that come forward and point out the pains they have and say that everything is fine. Just my $0.02.

rimantas 10y ago

The problem I see that in this case "evolving" looks suspiciously like running in circles without going anywhere.

royjacobs 10y ago
A good example mentioned in the article is the "npm scripts -> grunt -> gulp -> npm scripts" evolution in best practices for building.

Corrado 10y ago

I'm not saying that Node.js is bad and shouldn't be used. Rails was in the exact same boat several years ago; everything was changing so quickly that new people on the scene had to work pretty hard to keep up. Being on the other side of that process with Node.js, I can now understand the Rails newbie's frustration. :) If you are comfortable with the constant change and evolution in a platform/language/framework, then by all means continue to use it. Just don't disparage people that come forward and point out the pains they have and say that everything is fine. Just my $0.02.