Ask HN: Is Anyone on HN Using Vanilla JavaScript for New Web Projects?

4 points__app_dev__3y ago5 comments

I’m curious what the HN community is developing with for font-end work on new projects and if anyone is considering Vanilla JS for new projects or if most people are using React?

Obviously, a lot of companies still have plenty of all Vanilla JS projects, jQuery, etc but it feels from jobs that recruiters send me (and companies whom I spoke with) that almost all new development is using React.

For my background I’ve been developing with JavaScript since 1998 and have developed applications and sites with a wide range of popular libraries over the years so I’m comfortable with Vanilla JS. React, and more. My preference is actually Vanilla JS (even using Web Components) over React but it feels almost unheard of in the current environment.

At my current job I pretty much use everything (React, Vue, Vanilla JS) and even maintain some very old Classic ASP sites. For a new project I’m starting (everything from scratch – database, back-end, front-end) I’m currently debating whether to use React or Web Components.

5 comments

ttymck3y ago

I use alpine, but I see it as a "callback manager". It updates html when I update a JS variable. All the Javascript within my alpine "components" is vanilla. So far the clunkiest thing I've had to do was routing (query param syncing; inter-page routing is still delegated to the browser).

coolhoody3y ago

I default to Vanilla, would agree to Svelte under pressure. But most start with React. The logic likely being — at least I'll find a job if this fails. Can't blame, makes sense.

There are some exceptions — e.g. Pieter Levels (RemoteOk, NomadList) who sticks to Vanilla for everything. But it's rather rare.

teekay3y ago

We default to server-side rendering, plain HTML+CSS and vanilla JS when needed for most of the business apps we make. Why over-complicate the stack and increase maintenance costs when 90% of it all is a plain old CRUD? I do see a use case for React / SPAs, just not in what we typically do.

schwartzworld3y ago

I don't use react on side projects because I use it at work all day and I like focusing on new problems. When it's just me, and the project is a few hundred lines of code, that's fine. I'd probably still use it for anything I wanted collaboration on though.

tomcam3y ago

Yes, I’m using it and have for the past couple years. Admittedly I have created a CSS framework, because I have strict backwards compatibility requirements

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