You'd expect something like Discourse to be heavily reliant on javascript, as the rest of the modern web is (no javascript means less data on visitors so lower

You'd expect something like Discourse to be heavily reliant on javascript, as the rest of the modern web is (no javascript means less data on visitors so lower value on your company) but it's totally the opposite. Not only does Discourse work well without javascript, it is actually usable. I no longer close my tabs when I see Discourse, I just tap uBlock and the "</>" button. It may not have as many bells and whistles of the PHP forums of yore, but it works as is quite easy to use. My deepest thanks to the good hearted soul inside Discourse who in my imagination fought tirelessly for that to happen.