Hi Rob. A consequence of using most general purpose libraries is that because > they only support a small number of current browsers and don't > tolerate new browsers very well (a consequence of their poor code > quality and architecture), they not only disenfranchise perhaps 5 or > 10% of web users who don't have a compliant browser, but also require > constant upgrades and maintenance because of new or upgraded browsers. > This is the antithesis of the web. >
I'm not sure I see the alternative. Coding the thing yourself would lead to the same maintenance, probably even worse, each time a new browser (or browser bersion) appears which you had not targeted at first. How do you manage this better without using libraries ? My favourite chuckle is over enterprises that deliver web applications > that only run in one version of one browser (IE 6 being the the worst > culprit). They end up with web applications that are more restrictive > than the desktop applications they replaced - I'm sure "more > restrictive operating environment" wasn't in the business case for > changing to browser-based apps. > I don't laugh at this. This is rational. Most of the applications are written under time/cost constraints. When your initial requirements are to support only IE6, and you don't have time/money to invest in supporting other browsers, you take shortcuts. It's not always (even rarely) the developper's decision, but under pressure you have to deliver something that meets the requirements and only the requirements. Then the maintenance cost is too high for upgrading to other browsers and nobody wants to finance it, so you're stuck with it. Still, using libraries like jQuery and the like are exactly allowing to do better than that, since they support more than one single version of a browser. So you're not lowering your chances of being stuck by using a general purpose library. > If the time and effort spent learning a general purpose library is > instead spent learning javascript, then far better outcomes can be > achieved. > Wait... Are we talking about people writing applications only within the boundaries of one library (people starting every line of JS code with a $) ? If yes, then I agree. Knowing the language is necessary. If not, which DOM traversal-only library do you suggest I use ? What should I recommend to new employees in my company when they have to learn Javascript, who have to start coding with Javascript without having had any proper formation ? Cheers, Guillaume. -- 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]
