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Comment by jacobscott | Hacker News Reader

Do people actually like javascript, or just like the fact that it is de-facto always present in browsers due to its prevalence on the web (I could ask the same question about flash). The vast majority of client-side js I look at is spaghetti. To be fair, I'm looking at random webpages, not jQuery tutorial websites.

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I like Javascript, and given the choice I'd use it server-side as well. It's an excellent language; very minimal, lends itself well to concise but powerful code, and can be made to do pretty much anything given a decent API.

Most of the Javascript you look at is terrible because most of it is copypasted from tutorials dating back many years, when Javascript was, at best, not very well understood or known, and not the domain of serious applications. The modern libraries like jQuery and Prototype definitely exemplify how Javascript could be though.

Actually, most JavaScript looks bad because of people cargo-culting bad DOM code.

I don't really like Javascript, but I do agree that the core language is minimal but complete. I will stick with Lisp when I want that, though, because Lisp is nicer looking and has macros.

Javascript is a nice language, but that won't decide much. I mean, look at Lisp.

(Speaking of Lisp, I recently discovered reader macros. I mean, damn, but they're awesome.)

(Suit() )yourself)))))))))))))()((()

Just joshin'.

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