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It's unfortunate that you see javascript, or that any engineer would see any language, that way. JavaScript is an incredibly expressive language and has a very

It's unfortunate that you see javascript, or that any engineer would see any language, that way. JavaScript is an incredibly expressive language and has a very real and beneficial place alongside strongly-typed and compiled languages. We ought to recognize the use cases, as much as humanly possible, for all languages or frameworks or platforms (etc.) and simply use the best tools for any given job.

Argorak 12y ago
> We ought to recognize the use cases, as much as humanly possible, for all languages or frameworks or platforms (etc.) and simply use the best tools for any given job. Well, isn't that a bit of the point the parent makes? It is not necessarily the best tool for _everything_. (Not criticizing the project, many package managers are written in some scripting language)
larme 12y ago
It has its good part (though only 176 pages), it has its bad part, just like every other language. But let's be honest, the primary reason that javascript succeeds is that it's a major part of web. I'm not against using it for web, but using it everywhere where other (possibly superior) solutions exist is a waste IMHO.
lojack 12y ago
> We ought to recognize the use cases, as much as humanly possible, for all languages or frameworks or platforms I wouldn't exactly consider Operating Systems to be one of those use cases for Javascript. The flip side of knowing the use cases is knowing the limitations and understanding that "everything" isn't exactly a valid use case, which I believe is what larme was trying to say.
- andrewstuart2 12y ago
  I do see your point, and agree there. I initially (perhaps mistakenly) read larme's comment as "everything coded in javascript is a waste." I will say, though, that exploring the possibilities for a language is not a waste of time or mind. From stretching both mind and tool to do new things, new insight can be gained or patterns formed that might never have been considered. Additionally, nobody ever said an OS has to be the best at everything either. It could be that a javascript-based OS, while perhaps not as efficient at generating machine code, may end up being much more efficient for humans. This would certainly be a win for many tasks such as management that should be optimized for human use.
  - lojack 12y ago
    I agree. Didn't mean to say that this project wasn't interesting or a waste of time or anything like that -- it definitely has its own merits.

Argorak 12y ago

> We ought to recognize the use cases, as much as humanly possible, for all languages or frameworks or platforms (etc.) and simply use the best tools for any given job. Well, isn't that a bit of the point the parent makes? It is not necessarily the best tool for _everything_. (Not criticizing the project, many package managers are written in some scripting language)

larme 12y ago

It has its good part (though only 176 pages), it has its bad part, just like every other language. But let's be honest, the primary reason that javascript succeeds is that it's a major part of web. I'm not against using it for web, but using it everywhere where other (possibly superior) solutions exist is a waste IMHO.

lojack 12y ago

> We ought to recognize the use cases, as much as humanly possible, for all languages or frameworks or platforms I wouldn't exactly consider Operating Systems to be one of those use cases for Javascript. The flip side of knowing the use cases is knowing the limitations and understanding that "everything" isn't exactly a valid use case, which I believe is what larme was trying to say.

andrewstuart2 12y ago
I do see your point, and agree there. I initially (perhaps mistakenly) read larme's comment as "everything coded in javascript is a waste." I will say, though, that exploring the possibilities for a language is not a waste of time or mind. From stretching both mind and tool to do new things, new insight can be gained or patterns formed that might never have been considered. Additionally, nobody ever said an OS has to be the best at everything either. It could be that a javascript-based OS, while perhaps not as efficient at generating machine code, may end up being much more efficient for humans. This would certainly be a win for many tasks such as management that should be optimized for human use.
- lojack 12y ago
  I agree. Didn't mean to say that this project wasn't interesting or a waste of time or anything like that -- it definitely has its own merits.