Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#1

Post by xcambar » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 5:38 PM UTC

Javascript looks a lot like "the new C": new languages compile to it while adding features to it and it can run on almost any platform. But Javascript cannot be "The End of History".

Something will come someday that will supersede it. The only question is: What can/will it be like?

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#2

Post by rman666 » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 5:48 PM UTC

I don't know but it will eventually become Lisp.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#3

Post by jjaredsimpson » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 5:53 PM UTC

Based on dart and typescript, it'll feature static typing.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#4

Post by mattkrea » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:00 PM UTC

Since it's sort of on topic can someone tell me why "=>" is better than "." for assigning or access properties / methods? Brendan seems to want to head this direction and I'm not too excited about it.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#5

Post by xcambar » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:02 PM UTC

jjaredsimpson wrote: post #3

Based on dart and typescript, it'll feature static typing.

True that now Dart wants to be standardized (see http://developers.slashdot.org/story/13/12/14/2047248/google...) and Dartium, we see Google's pushing it pretty hard!

Maybe it takes the horsepower of Google to replace a language as widespread as JS.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#6

Post by xcambar » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:04 PM UTC

rman666 wrote: post #2

I don't know but it will eventually become Lisp.

That's (probably) another topic, but it seems that FP is the new sexy :D

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#7

Post by ghostdiver » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:45 PM UTC

Ecmascript 7 or Ecmascript 8 should not be called "JavaScript", my proposal:

- remove "Script"

- replace "Java" with more accurate term (how about Harmony ?)

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#8

Post by njharman » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:51 PM UTC

> Javascript looks a lot like "the new C" ... > Something will come someday that will supersede it.

What has superseded C? Nothing. Many things are built on and around C and it is no longer the only choice. I see the same future for Javascript. It will forever be the "low-level" browser based language.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#9

Post by jbooth » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:54 PM UTC

xcambar wrote: post #6

rman666 wrote: post #2

I don't know but it will eventually become Lisp.

That's (probably) another topic, but it seems that FP is the new sexy :D

And the old sexy. Back in the day, UNIX was a piece of garbage and the future was LISP machines, if you asked a lot of people. Nowadays, to similar people, C/Go/Java are garbage and the future is, I dunno, Haskell or something.

I like the idea of LISP, I not only aced the SICP class back in college but tutored it, too. I get it. And I wouldn't use a LISP for the majority of the work I do these days, it's just harder to work with than imperative code for a lot of normal, boring business use cases. You can write imperative code in a functional style when you have to, it's a lot harder to get the imperative advantages from a purely functional language.

Re: Ask HN: What will the post-Javascript era will be like?

#10

Post by ashkav » Tue, Dec 17, 2013, 6:55 PM UTC

the better question is: what will be the next platform? there will be high momentum for change when the underlying platform changes, with todays platform it's just too convenient to compile to C or compile to javascript.

how will platforms evolve?

I'd say it will be a language that is parallel to the core and only sequential in edge cases, because thats what the underlying platform (processor, graphics card) is evolving to. parallel first, sequential second.