> Bootstrap 5 will remove jQuery as a dependency ... by copying over/rebuilding big chunks of it. - $(element).closest(`.${ClassName.ALERT}`)[0] + SelectorEngine.closest(element, `.${ClassName.ALERT}`) - $.Event(Event.CLOSE) + EventHandler.trigger(element, Event.CLOSE) - $(element).one( ... ) + EventHandler.one( ... ) - $(this).data(DATA_KEY) + Data.getData(this, DATA_KEY) And so on and so forth. DOM APIs are just as…
Now every framework will use a different internal jQuery like custom system, when these pile up high enough another jQuery like library will appear that everyone will use if browsers start fragmenting again. Though with WebAssembly and other technologies maybe less of that will be restrictive enough to need common browser baseline libraries.
jQuery was very required during IE/Firefox/Chrome changes and made a baseplane of support that didn't need to be tested in every browser by every project, devs could just focus on building their webapp. It is a bit similar to a game studio making a custom engine or using a common one like Unity or Unreal, there are pros and cons of both, but the pro is the devs can focus on building a game and not having to worry as much about the engine.
Now that browsers and transpilers exist, that is less of an issue but also leads to many more versions of the same thing, for better or worse.
I just hope that most projects aren't bogged down in extra work and testing recreating jQuery for the thousandths time. That is one problem I see with javascript ecosystem today is that lots more work goes into the tech rather than your app/game/project/product. While it is simplifying in some areas, sometimes it can actually add complexity to your tech stack that is unnecessary and wastes cycles that should be on your product.