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Wasn't Rust developed specifically for Mozilla? Isn't mozilla written in Rust?

by abraxas 8mo ago

wmf 8mo ago
Firefox has some Rust components but it isn't written in Rust overall. Servo is written in Rust but it isn't a full browser.
- tvshtr 8mo ago
  Servo is slowly but steadily getting there. The thing with Servo is that it's highly modularized and some of its components are widely used by the larger Rust ecosystem, even it the whole browser engine isn't. So there's multi-pronged vested interest in developing it. Moreover, Servo aims to be embeddable (there are some working examples already), which is where other non-Chrome/ium browsers are failing (and Firefox too). Thanks to this it has much better chance at wider adoption and actually spawning multiple browsers.
  - nicoburns 8mo ago
    > The thing with Servo is that it's highly modularized and some of its components are widely used by the larger Rust ecosystem, even it the whole browser engine isn't. Alas not nearly as modularized as it could be. I think it's mainly just Stylo and WebRender (the components that got pulled into Firefox), and html5ever (the HTML parser) that are externally consumable. Text and layout support are two things that could easily be ecosystem modules but aren't seemingly (from my perspective) because the ambition to be modular has been lost.
    - tvshtr 8mo ago
      I've seen recent talk about swappable js engine, so I'm unsure about the ambition being lost. I'm eyeing Blitz too (actually tried to use it in one of my projects but the deps fucked me up).
tvshtr 8mo ago
Yes and yes. Firefox is partially written in Rust.
Leynos 8mo ago
Only parts of it. Servo is the engine written in Rust, some of which ended up in Mozilla.
snerbles 8mo ago
Mozilla laid off the Servo team years ago.
- tvshtr 8mo ago
  Servo was passed onto Linux Foundation and is still being developed, some of its components are shared with Firefox.
  - rvz 8mo ago
    Yet, after all these years its browser is quite frankly pre-historic.
    - tvshtr 8mo ago
      What are you talking about? It doesn't have a "browser", it has a testing shell. For a time there was actual attempt with the Verso experiment but it got shelved just recently. Servo is working at being embeddable at the same time when Rust GUI toolkits are maturing. Once it gets embedding stabilized that will be the time for a full blown browser developement.
      - rvz 8mo ago
        > It doesn't have a "browser", it has a testing shell. So, yes it is still pre-historic. > Once it gets embedding stabilized that will be the time for a full blown browser developement. Servo development began in 2012. [0] 14 years later we get a v0.0.1. At this point, Ladybird will likely reach 1.0 faster than Servo could, and the latter is not even remotely close to being usable even in 14 years of waiting. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servo_(software) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servo_(software)
        tvshtr 8mo ago
        This is disingenuous. Servo is using RUST, language which grew together with it, pretty much, and all components surrounding it. C++ is how old, please remind me?

Wasn't Rust developed specifically for Mozilla? Isn't mozilla written in Rust?

by abraxas 8mo ago

Wasn't Rust developed specifically for Mozilla? Isn't mozilla written in Rust?

wmf 8mo ago

Firefox has some Rust components but it isn't written in Rust overall. Servo is written in Rust but it isn't a full browser.

tvshtr 8mo ago
Servo is slowly but steadily getting there. The thing with Servo is that it's highly modularized and some of its components are widely used by the larger Rust ecosystem, even it the whole browser engine isn't. So there's multi-pronged vested interest in developing it. Moreover, Servo aims to be embeddable (there are some working examples already), which is where other non-Chrome/ium browsers are failing (and Firefox too). Thanks to this it has much better chance at wider adoption and actually spawning multiple browsers.
- nicoburns 8mo ago
  > The thing with Servo is that it's highly modularized and some of its components are widely used by the larger Rust ecosystem, even it the whole browser engine isn't. Alas not nearly as modularized as it could be. I think it's mainly just Stylo and WebRender (the components that got pulled into Firefox), and html5ever (the HTML parser) that are externally consumable. Text and layout support are two things that could easily be ecosystem modules but aren't seemingly (from my perspective) because the ambition to be modular has been lost.
  - tvshtr 8mo ago
    I've seen recent talk about swappable js engine, so I'm unsure about the ambition being lost. I'm eyeing Blitz too (actually tried to use it in one of my projects but the deps fucked me up).

tvshtr 8mo ago

Yes and yes. Firefox is partially written in Rust.

Leynos 8mo ago

Only parts of it. Servo is the engine written in Rust, some of which ended up in Mozilla.

snerbles 8mo ago

Mozilla laid off the Servo team years ago.

tvshtr 8mo ago
Servo was passed onto Linux Foundation and is still being developed, some of its components are shared with Firefox.
- rvz 8mo ago
  Yet, after all these years its browser is quite frankly pre-historic.
  - tvshtr 8mo ago
    What are you talking about? It doesn't have a "browser", it has a testing shell. For a time there was actual attempt with the Verso experiment but it got shelved just recently. Servo is working at being embeddable at the same time when Rust GUI toolkits are maturing. Once it gets embedding stabilized that will be the time for a full blown browser developement.
    - rvz 8mo ago
      > It doesn't have a "browser", it has a testing shell. So, yes it is still pre-historic. > Once it gets embedding stabilized that will be the time for a full blown browser developement. Servo development began in 2012. [0] 14 years later we get a v0.0.1. At this point, Ladybird will likely reach 1.0 faster than Servo could, and the latter is not even remotely close to being usable even in 14 years of waiting. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servo_(software) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Servo_(software)
      - tvshtr 8mo ago
        This is disingenuous. Servo is using RUST, language which grew together with it, pretty much, and all components surrounding it. C++ is how old, please remind me?