In 2014, Gary Bernhardt delivered a talk, “The Birth and Death of JavaScript,” at PyCon that offers a surprisingly prescient, if somewhat tongue-in-cheek, look at the evolution of programming languages and the potential trajectory of JavaScript. While the title suggests a grim fate, the presentation is less about outright dismissal and more about the cyclical nature of technology and the inevitable rise and fall of dominant paradigms.
What Happened
Bernhardt’s talk presents a historical overview of programming languages, starting in the 1990s and projecting forward to 2035. He argues that languages become popular due to specific needs and constraints, but eventually become unwieldy and are replaced by newer solutions. He illustrates this with a timeline, pointing out the limitations that led to the downfall of languages like Smalltalk and Perl. JavaScript, in his view, would follow a similar path, burdened by its early design choices and the compromises made to achieve browser compatibility. The talk humorously suggests JavaScript would be supplanted by more efficient and maintainable languages, though it doesn’t specify which languages would take its place.
Why It Matters
While presented with a comedic slant, Bernhardt's talk raises important questions about the sustainability of programming languages. Developers often focus on the immediate needs of a project, but long-term maintainability and the potential for technological obsolescence are crucial considerations. The continued dominance of JavaScript today, despite the predictions made in 2014, highlights the power of network effects and the massive ecosystem built around the language. However, the core issues Bernhardt points out – the language’s quirks and historical baggage – haven't entirely disappeared. TypeScript, for example, can be seen as an attempt to address some of these shortcomings by adding static typing to JavaScript. The talk also underscores the importance of continuous learning and adaptation for developers. Languages evolve, and staying current with new paradigms is essential for long-term career success.
What To Watch
Interestingly, JavaScript is not dead in 2024, and remains the most popular language for web development by a significant margin. It’s worth considering whether the factors Bernhardt identified will eventually lead to a decline, or if the JavaScript ecosystem will continue to innovate and adapt. The emergence of WebAssembly as a potential alternative runtime environment for the web is one area to watch. Another is the ongoing development of new JavaScript features and frameworks. The success of these initiatives will determine whether JavaScript can overcome its historical limitations and remain a relevant technology for years to come. It remains to be seen if a true “successor” will emerge, or if JavaScript will continue to be patched and extended indefinitely.