JS the language every programmer should know

The application landscape is shifting from desktops and laptops to tablets and phones. The trend is moving at a record pace, and the demand for all applications to work everywhere is growing as well. Currently, to craft applications in the various types of platforms, you have a host of languages and technologies that you need to learn. How can we expect developers to be experts in C#, Ruby, Java, Objective-C, for one flagship product that can work and run anywhere?

JavaScript has been around since 1997. In the last few years, JavaScript has moved from a script language to a full featured language that can pretty much do anything and run anywhere. In this talk, I will go over some interesting facts and points which will make the argument that every developer should know JavaScript.

Transcript

1. JavaScript The language Every Programmer Should Know Wednesday, March 27, 13
2. Questions • Who has programmed in JavaScript? • Who is JavaScript Experts (Ninjas) Wednesday, March 27, 13
3. Who am I • Tom Wilson (@twilson63) • President of Jack Russell Software (2007) • We build web and mobile applications for HealthCare. (Medication Therapy Mgmt) • Love JavaScript, Ruby, and the web platform. Wednesday, March 27, 13
4. About my talk Think Different • My talk is an argument to get you thinking about a different way of choosing languages you want to master. • It is ok to disagree, the thoughts in this talk are opinionated. http://www.flickr.com/photos/simssototo/141272015/ Wednesday, March 27, 13
5. Why JavaScript? • Before we get into the why, lets dive into some reasons not to learn javascript? http://www.flickr.com/photos/vlauria/14740709/ Wednesday, March 27, 13
6. Reasons not to learn JS Wednesday, March 27, 13
7. Reasons not to learn JS • I am a backend or database developer and JS is a front-end technology. Wednesday, March 27, 13
8. Reasons not to learn JS • I am a backend or database developer and JS is a front-end technology. • I can do everything I need using (Java, Ruby) with any Server-Side Framework (GWT, Rails), and it will be fast using Caching. Wednesday, March 27, 13
9. Reasons not to learn JS • I am a backend or database developer and JS is a front-end technology. • I can do everything I need using (Java, Ruby) with any Server-Side Framework (GWT, Rails), and it will be fast using Caching. • JavaScript is a Toy Language. Wednesday, March 27, 13
10. Reasons not to learn JS • I am a backend or database developer and JS is a front-end technology. • I can do everything I need using (Java, Ruby) with any Server-Side Framework (GWT, Rails), and it will be fast using Caching. • JavaScript is a Toy Language. • The future is native applications. Wednesday, March 27, 13
11. Reason not to learn JS (cont) Wednesday, March 27, 13
12. Reason not to learn JS (cont) • JavaScript is not Fast Wednesday, March 27, 13
13. Reason not to learn JS (cont) • JavaScript is not Fast • JavaScript is not a typed or compiled language. Wednesday, March 27, 13
14. Reason not to learn JS (cont) • JavaScript is not Fast • JavaScript is not a typed or compiled language. • more? Wednesday, March 27, 13
15. Myth Busters http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/HappLand!.jpg Wednesday, March 27, 13
16. Is JavaScript the only language that ships with all mainstream browsers Wednesday, March 27, 13
17. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
18. JavaScript is used as a core query language for NoSQL Databases. Wednesday, March 27, 13
19. True http://couchdb.apache.org/image/couch.png http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/eb/MongoDB_Logo.png Wednesday, March 27, 13
20. JavaScript is being used to build HTML5 Games Wednesday, March 27, 13
21. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
22. JavaScript is available on more internet connected devices than any other language Wednesday, March 27, 13
23. True In the report, it reveals that there are 425 million internet-connected tech devices and 39 million consoles that can be found in U.S. homes. To put things in perspective, consoles came in at third with 39 million units connected to the web, which was beaten by laptops/desktops at 183.8 million and coming in at second were smarphones at 133 million. Also of note, the report found 31.8 million tablets in the U.S., 16 million HDTVs directly online, 12.9 million Blu-ray players, and 8.5 million streaming media http://www.gameranx.com/updates/id/11789/article/the-u-s-has-more-internet-connected-devices-than-people/ Wednesday, March 27, 13
24. JavaScript Apps can be deployed to SMART TV’s Wednesday, March 27, 13
25. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
26. Is JavaScript an OOP Style Language? Wednesday, March 27, 13
27. Myth JavaScript can be written in many different styles: OOP, Functional, etc Wednesday, March 27, 13
28. JavaScript can run on the Server Wednesday, March 27, 13
29. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
30. You can write JS to control hardware, robots and quad-copters Wednesday, March 27, 13
31. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
32. There is a mobile operating system that is running in JavaScript Wednesday, March 27, 13
33. True Wednesday, March 27, 13
34. There are more open source projects in JavaScript than any other language Wednesday, March 27, 13
35. True? Ohlo.net Wednesday, March 27, 13
36. JavaScript has the best developer tools Wednesday, March 27, 13
37. Myth But getting better! Wednesday, March 27, 13
38. JavaScript is easy to Master Wednesday, March 27, 13
39. Myth But there is plenty of material available to learn. Wednesday, March 27, 13
40. JavaScript is the Assembly Language of the Web Wednesday, March 27, 13
41. ? Wednesday, March 27, 13
42. Why should I master JS? http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m0i8wy4V5t1rrp2pto1_500.jpg Wednesday, March 27, 13
43. Scientific Approach Well sort of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mad_scientist.svg Wednesday, March 27, 13
44. Have you heard of the CAP Theorem (Consistency, Availability, and Partition tolerance) Wednesday, March 27, 13
45. How about the PSQ Theorem (Productivity, Speed, and Quality) Wednesday, March 27, 13
46. I hope not, I just made it up. :) Maybe you have heard of Good, Fast, Cheap Pick any two, can’t have all three Wednesday, March 27, 13
47. Languages can be subjectively measured in this way. Wednesday, March 27, 13
48. Machine Language • Productivity ( 1 - 10) = 1 • Speed ( 1 - 10) = 10 • Quality (1 - 10) = 1 Wednesday, March 27, 13
49. • Productivity (1 - 10) = 9 • Speed (1 - 10) = 3 • Quality (1 - 10) = 5 Wednesday, March 27, 13
50. • Productivity (1 - 10) = 3 • Speed (1 - 10) = 8 • Quality (1 - 10) = 3 • (Not many developers master C++) Wednesday, March 27, 13
51. JavaScript • Productivity (1 - 10) = 7 • Speed (1 - 10) = 6 • Quality (1 - 10) = 6 Wednesday, March 27, 13
52. PSQ Wednesday, March 27, 13
53. OpenSource Wednesday, March 27, 13
54. Monthly Commits (Ohloh.net) Wednesday, March 27, 13
55. Monthly Projects (ohloh.net) Wednesday, March 27, 13
56. C vs JS Monthly Projects (Ohloh.net) Wednesday, March 27, 13
57. How about Job Availability? Wednesday, March 27, 13
58. 0 150 300 450 600 JavaScript Java PHP Ruby Python CSharp C++ NodeJS StackOverflow Jobs Wednesday, March 27, 13
59. Salaries (SimplyHired.com) 0 30 60 90 120 SFO NY USA JavaScript C++ Wednesday, March 27, 13
60. Styles and Preferences • JavaScript - OOP • JavaScript - Functional • CoffeeScript • Dart • TypeScript • etc. Wednesday, March 27, 13
61. Where will JS be in 3, 5, 10 years Wednesday, March 27, 13
62. IMO HTML, CSS, and JS is and will be the longest running platform in history and continues to evolve and innovate Wednesday, March 27, 13
63. What do you think? Wednesday, March 27, 13
64. If I convinced you to master javascript? Here are some resources to get you started Wednesday, March 27, 13
65. Superherojs.com Wednesday, March 27, 13
66. eloquentjavascript.net Wednesday, March 27, 13
67. nodeguide.com Wednesday, March 27, 13
68. developer.mozilla.org Wednesday, March 27, 13
69. Return on Investment Invest your time spent learning new technology wisely, ask questions. Wednesday, March 27, 13
70. Thank You Questions Wednesday, March 27, 13