?Hi Chris, I’m sorry, I think I wasn’t clear. I never meant to say that anyone should disregard CoffeeScript, just that it’s not the way to learn JavaScript. I also don’t think we should completely write off GWT, specifically because there are Java developers who need to be able to do some front-end development but don’t have the time to learn an entirely new set of tools. My only point was to understand that using these abstractions doesn’t actually increase your knowledge of JavaScript (it increases your knowledge of CoffeeScript or GWT).
I love tinkering and trying out new and interesting approaches, and I’d encourage everyone to do so. Just be sure to understand what you’re learning and how it helps you reach your own goals. -Nicholas _____________________________________________________ Nicholas C. Zakas Twitter: @slicknet Blog: http://www.nczonline.net/ From: Chris Williams Sent: Wednesday, December 15, 2010 7:53 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [JSMentors] Coffee-script Although I agree in spirit with Nicholas' advice (trust me, huge proponent of learning raw JS), I disagree with disregarding it completely (GWT, I would agree with that 100% :) ). If you use it to write code you feel comfortable with, then go through and review the generated code and UNDERSTAND and question what what was generated and why it generated - then you essentially are building your very own 1-on-1 mentor for your specific problem set. I guess I would echo, but change the tone to use it as a supplement, not a replacement to learning JavaScript. Chris On Wed, Dec 15, 2010 at 10:49 AM, Getify <[email protected]> wrote: +1 to Nicholas' advice. --Kyle From: Nicholas C. Zakas Sent: Wednesday, December 15, 2010 9:37 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [JSMentors] Coffee-script I’d like to offer a word of caution about CoffeeScript and other related intermediary languages: this isn’t the best way to learn JavaScript. I highly recommend that anyone who wants to learn more, become more proficient, or take their coding to the next level avoid solutions like this. The only way to improve in JavaScript is to use the language consistently. Becoming better at CoffeeScript means that you’re learning more about CoffeeScript, which may not be a bad thing, but it doesn’t translate directly into being better at JavaScript. The same can be said for solutions like GWT. Of course, if your goal is to become really good at CoffeeScript, then please disregard. -Nicholas _____________________________________________________ Nicholas C. Zakas Twitter: @slicknet Blog: http://www.nczonline.net/ -- To view archived discussions from the original JSMentors Mailman list: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To search via a non-Google archive, visit here: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe from this group, send email to mailto:jsmentors%[email protected] -- To view archived discussions from the original JSMentors Mailman list: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To search via a non-Google archive, visit here: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] -- To view archived discussions from the original JSMentors Mailman list: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To search via a non-Google archive, visit here: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]
