People are always tribal around their programming languages and they always think their language is the best. So at any point in time every language is “hated” by 90% of the people.

I am old enough to remember language wars between PHP and ASP.

And in a way that’s natural – if you thought some other language was better – you would be working in that other language. So by default, your language is the best.

Why Hate JavaScript?

Simply put – it’s easy to hate.

It has some features that look like quirks to people who don’t understand the language very well. And because of these features it’s very easy to misrepresent the language.

// people show this example to "prove" how bad JS is
'0' == 0 // evaluates to true

// most languages have equality operator (==)
// this is not the case in JS (===)
'0' === 0 // evaluates to false

Steps to hate JavaScript:

  • take something from other languages that are not JS (==)
  • apply them to JS
  • then make fun of JS not working properly with non-JS syntax

How And What People Think?

Surprisingly – very little.

If you ask any random person question “why?” two times in a row you will often times find they have no idea why they hold a certain belief. (and then they will get mad at you and leave)

Most likely they’re just repeating stuff they heard somewhere else. Especially if it’s a popular opinion.

Also, the more “passionate” people are around “their” opinions, the less likely it’s their own opinion.

In my experience, the more I had to think about certain topic, the more pros and cons I see for both sides of the argument. And the less likely I am going to hold a firm stance.

Unfortunate outcome of that is: the more you know about the subject, the less likely you’re going to lose a debate against someone who doesn’t know anything about it. Simply because you lack the absolute conviction only an ignorant person can have.

The Truth About JavaScript

JavaScript has the highest potential than any other language in existence. It has spread through all the platforms available. And it is basically the language of the internet.

You can do ABSOLUTELY everything with it:

  • frontend
  • backend
  • mobile apps
  • desktop apps

You can write code once and (with minor modification) deploy NATIVE apps on all platforms.

It has the most vibrant developer community in the world. And in short it has become the most versatile language in the world.

Some might even say – the best.

(but that’s just my opinion)

P.S. -> read this article if you want to double your salary