State of JS 2024 Preview

[SachaG]

• https://github.com/Devographics/surveys/issues/224
• https://github.com/Devographics/surveys/issues/239
• https://github.com/Devographics/surveys/issues/242
• https://github.com/Devographics/surveys/issues/227
• Preview: https://survey.devographics.com/en-US/survey/state-of-js/2024

[SachaG]

Changes:

Features

• added set methods

• added array_from_async

• added object_group_by

• added promise_try

• Libraries/Frameworks

• removed Eleventy (as requested by @zachleat)

• added rspack

• for every section, added "which of these frameworks do you use in a professional context?" question

• added node_test_runner

• added analog

• added hono

• added elysia

Other Questions

• added did_you_run_into_technical_issues question
• added job_title question

[SachaG]

More general issue: there was a lot of complaints about the fact that the back-end frameworks section has been downsized to a single question for the past couple years.

The reasoning behind this was that:

1. the survey is quite long already
2. not every JS dev uses JS on the back-end
3. I wanted to create a separate JS on the back-end survey eventually

Given that the back-end JS survey hasn't yet materialized, should I reconsider and promote back-end JS to a full section again? If so could it replace another section? Which one?

[SachaG]

Considering adding two new questions:

JS0/JSSugar Proposal

What do you think about the recent JS0/JSSugar proposal?

If implemented, this proposal would shift some of the weight of supporting new features to JSSugar, a superset of JavaScript interpreted by build tools; while browsers would only need to support a subset of that language, JS0

• Very bad idea
• Bad idea
• Neutral
• Good idea
• Very good idea

UPDATE: might delay this one until we can be sure the general public has an accurate understanding of the proposal.

Native JavaScript Types

How would you like to see JavaScript support types?

• As similar to TypeScript as possible
• Using comments (ala JSDoc)
• I wish JavaScript would remain untyped

[SachaG]

[SachaG]

[SachaG]

[SachaG]

Which of these active JavaScript proposals are you most excited about?

Updated list based on feedback from TC39 group chat:

Stage 3:

• Temporal
• Decorators
• Array.fromAsync
• Explicit Resource Management
• Source Phase Imports
• Dynamic Code Brand Checks
• RegExp.escape

Stage 2.7:

• ShadowRealm
• Deferring Module Evaluation
• Joint Iteration
• Iterator Sequencing

Not included (too niche)

• Legacy RegExp features in JavaScript
• JSON.parse source text access
• Float16 on TypedArrays, DataView, Math.f16round
• Decorator Metadata
• Time Zone Canonicalization
• Uint8Array to/from Base64
• Redeclarable global eval-introduced vars
• Atomics.pause
• Math.sumPrecise
• Error.isError

[littledan]

This list looks pretty good. I think it'll be quite useful for TC39 to get input on these proposals, both to let us have a check-in on whether we've been making good decisions recently, and to give input to implementations about priorities.

I'd consider including JSON.parse source text access, decorator metadata (and maybe Float16 arrays, Math.sumPrecise). I'd consider excluding dynamic code brand checks (and maybe Array.fromAsync).

[SachaG]

OK, I think the survey is pretty much finalized. Tentative launch date is November 10, but I might move it up/delay it a bit based on the overall survey schedule.

[56789KD]

Issue a change view comment here démographie.