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I have always been wondering how Node.js will do as a backend option. I feel it's in decline, a quick google trend confirms it: https://trends.google.com/trends

I have always been wondering how Node.js will do as a backend option. I feel it's in decline, a quick google trend confirms it: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=%2Fm%2F0bbxf89 https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=... I invested quite some time on node.js and eventually bailed out and now am using other alternatives. It did not work out as not all applications need those async-logics which made code unnecessarily difficult. Nowadays for me, nodejs along with npm/yarn are just more of a frontend tool, which are still very useful and essential.

TameAntelope 6y ago
Are you meaning to refer to JavaScript rather than Node.js? I don't know of a way to use the Node.js runtime inside of a browser (the frontend), my feeling is that's pretty redundant.
- bstar77 6y ago
  I took the comment to mean it's only useful for something like npm/webpack (dependency management and hot loading), which I strongly disagree with.
- ysavir 6y ago
  I think they mean using Node.js tools like yarn/NPM for compilers, linters, etc, as opposed to using it for a server.
  - synergy20 6y ago
    yes it is, it's still essential for frontend devel, actually it's pretty much a must-have scenario.
lxe 6y ago
With serverless functions being the hype, along with things like Next.js, Node isn't going away as a popular "backend for frontend" technology.
- vagrantJin 6y ago
  What does serverless functions mean? Is it a good idea to make hype a relevant factor in choosing web or app's architecture?
  - lxe 6y ago
    > Is it a good idea to make hype a relevant factor in choosing web or app's architecture? Yes! Hype = active community and support, interested developers, possibly novel solutions to problems, etc...
    - samhh 6y ago
      It can just as easily mean that nobody knows the solution to its novel problems yet. It potentially means nobody wants to touch it in a few years once the largest problems have revealed themselves en masse. If something has hype it's worth investigating, absolutely. But it should also be treated with a great deal of scepticism; there's often a lot of money in it for businesses and individuals moving you onto the latest shiny tech.
bstar77 6y ago
I think node is great for stateless micro services. I know many people here have a vendetta against micro service architecture, but it has worked wonderfully for me in my career. Development is fast and I can keep cloud bills down with autoscaling.
esotericimpl 6y ago
You should check out golang https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=Golang https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=... It’s trending down as well. What a silly comment on a single datapoint. Node.js is an extremely solid choice for any startup to develop their backend infrastructure.
enoughalready 6y ago
It's probably best to look at the trends of other platforms/languages, alongside of Node.js. Many languages showed a similar, slight decline, which might indicate something else is going on: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=%2Fm%2F0bbxf89,c%23,golang,java,php https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=...

TameAntelope 6y ago

Are you meaning to refer to JavaScript rather than Node.js? I don't know of a way to use the Node.js runtime inside of a browser (the frontend), my feeling is that's pretty redundant.

bstar77 6y ago
I took the comment to mean it's only useful for something like npm/webpack (dependency management and hot loading), which I strongly disagree with.
ysavir 6y ago
I think they mean using Node.js tools like yarn/NPM for compilers, linters, etc, as opposed to using it for a server.
- synergy20 6y ago
  yes it is, it's still essential for frontend devel, actually it's pretty much a must-have scenario.

lxe 6y ago

With serverless functions being the hype, along with things like Next.js, Node isn't going away as a popular "backend for frontend" technology.

vagrantJin 6y ago
What does serverless functions mean? Is it a good idea to make hype a relevant factor in choosing web or app's architecture?
- lxe 6y ago
  > Is it a good idea to make hype a relevant factor in choosing web or app's architecture? Yes! Hype = active community and support, interested developers, possibly novel solutions to problems, etc...
  - samhh 6y ago
    It can just as easily mean that nobody knows the solution to its novel problems yet. It potentially means nobody wants to touch it in a few years once the largest problems have revealed themselves en masse. If something has hype it's worth investigating, absolutely. But it should also be treated with a great deal of scepticism; there's often a lot of money in it for businesses and individuals moving you onto the latest shiny tech.

bstar77 6y ago

I think node is great for stateless micro services. I know many people here have a vendetta against micro service architecture, but it has worked wonderfully for me in my career. Development is fast and I can keep cloud bills down with autoscaling.

esotericimpl 6y ago

You should check out golang https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=Golang https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=... It’s trending down as well. What a silly comment on a single datapoint. Node.js is an extremely solid choice for any startup to develop their backend infrastructure.

enoughalready 6y ago

It's probably best to look at the trends of other platforms/languages, alongside of Node.js. Many languages showed a similar, slight decline, which might indicate something else is going on: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=%2Fm%2F0bbxf89,c%23,golang,java,php https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&q=...