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ReasonML and ReScript are a (more or less the same) new syntax on top of OCaml. ReScript only targets JS, while ReasonML targets both JS and the native archs OC

by cies 4y ago

ReasonML and ReScript are a (more or less the same) new syntax on top of OCaml. ReScript only targets JS, while ReasonML targets both JS and the native archs OCaml supports. Facebook and Bloomberg are using ReScript internally, afaik. Messenger.com is written in it. Facebook also maintains React bindings to ReScript. https://rescript-lang.org/ https://rescript-lang.org/ https://reasonml.github.io/ https://reasonml.github.io/

giraffe_lady 4y ago
Rescript is completely excellent imo. I have used ocaml for years and while I like it more than most languages it's also weird and frustrating sometimes. Rescript uses the best parts of ocaml (type system & exhaustive pattern match, first class modules) to patch over the worst parts of js. It's almost alarming how effective it is to combine these two gnarly hostile languages like this. I also work in typescript a lot and it's the obvious comparison/competitor there. While it has objectively "won" it's so so much worse than rescript. Its type system is much more complex, untrustworthy inference, and ultimately is still unsound lol. Ocaml's type system is truly a wonder. Extremely practically helpful, complex enough to express anything without becoming a full blown language in its own right like eg typescript and haskell. Rescript compiles to very reasonable js and writing bindings is not particularly exhausting once you get the hang of it. I've been using it for a number of projects including completely irresponsible cases like deno fresh and it's been wonderful. What typescript could and should have been.
- frou_dh 4y ago
  How does that work with Fresh? Just not using its built-in "Islands" machinery at all? Or smuggling stuff in that as far as Fresh is concerned are more orthodox React components?
  - giraffe_lady 4y ago
    Rescript has good react integration and compiles to normal js, so a little care to structure your rescript files so the compiled js ends up where fresh expects it is mostly all you need. The more worrying thing is that fresh uses preact while rescript explicitly uses react and so far doesn't have a way to change it. I just overrode react in the import map to link preact instead. This is frightening and fragile, since the interfaces aren't guaranteed to be identical. But it's been working fine on a personal project for a few months now.
Taikonerd 4y ago
Is ReasonML dead? Their last blog post is from August 2018... https://reasonml.github.io/blog/ https://reasonml.github.io/blog/
- cies 4y ago
  Quieted down, but I depend on projects with worst graphs: https://github.com/reasonml/reason/graphs/contributors https://github.com/reasonml/reason/graphs/contributors
illiarian 4y ago
The rescript-reason split killed both IMO. ReasonML was a very tiny language to begin with. Splitting it into two split the already tiny language and community into two minuscule ones. And for no good reason (pun not intended). And they were doing quite well, and influencing OCaml in good and meaningful ways (like improving error reporting).

by cies 4y ago

giraffe_lady 4y ago

Rescript is completely excellent imo. I have used ocaml for years and while I like it more than most languages it's also weird and frustrating sometimes. Rescript uses the best parts of ocaml (type system & exhaustive pattern match, first class modules) to patch over the worst parts of js. It's almost alarming how effective it is to combine these two gnarly hostile languages like this. I also work in typescript a lot and it's the obvious comparison/competitor there. While it has objectively "won" it's so so much worse than rescript. Its type system is much more complex, untrustworthy inference, and ultimately is still unsound lol. Ocaml's type system is truly a wonder. Extremely practically helpful, complex enough to express anything without becoming a full blown language in its own right like eg typescript and haskell. Rescript compiles to very reasonable js and writing bindings is not particularly exhausting once you get the hang of it. I've been using it for a number of projects including completely irresponsible cases like deno fresh and it's been wonderful. What typescript could and should have been.

frou_dh 4y ago
How does that work with Fresh? Just not using its built-in "Islands" machinery at all? Or smuggling stuff in that as far as Fresh is concerned are more orthodox React components?
- giraffe_lady 4y ago
  Rescript has good react integration and compiles to normal js, so a little care to structure your rescript files so the compiled js ends up where fresh expects it is mostly all you need. The more worrying thing is that fresh uses preact while rescript explicitly uses react and so far doesn't have a way to change it. I just overrode react in the import map to link preact instead. This is frightening and fragile, since the interfaces aren't guaranteed to be identical. But it's been working fine on a personal project for a few months now.

Taikonerd 4y ago

Is ReasonML dead? Their last blog post is from August 2018... https://reasonml.github.io/blog/ https://reasonml.github.io/blog/

cies 4y ago
Quieted down, but I depend on projects with worst graphs: https://github.com/reasonml/reason/graphs/contributors https://github.com/reasonml/reason/graphs/contributors

illiarian 4y ago

The rescript-reason split killed both IMO. ReasonML was a very tiny language to begin with. Splitting it into two split the already tiny language and community into two minuscule ones. And for no good reason (pun not intended). And they were doing quite well, and influencing OCaml in good and meaningful ways (like improving error reporting).