Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats

Stump’d × JavaScript × GraphQL × Memory Safety × Web History

Wed Jul 12 2023

Web DevelopmentJavaScriptWeb TechnologiesNode.jsCSSHTML5 Video

Description

This episode covers the history of web development, JavaScript and web technologies, web technologies continued, ECMAScript and CSS, and web design and miscellaneous topics. It explores the origins of JavaScript, the launch of Netflix, the development of cascading style sheets, event-driven programming in Node.js, memory safety in programming languages, HTTP/2 multiplexing, strategies for optimizing HTML5 video, function declarations vs function expressions in JavaScript, criticisms of CSS and its developments over the years, CSS Zen Garden, and recommendations for high-quality cables and error tracking tools.

Insights

JavaScript Origins

JavaScript was introduced in 1995 by Brendan Eich at Netscape. It has since become one of the most popular programming languages for web development.

Event-Driven Programming

Event-driven programming in Node.js is determined by events received at runtime and works using the event loop. This allows for efficient and scalable web applications.

TypeScript Type Eraser

Type eraser in TypeScript removes types during compilation and does not affect the generated JavaScript code. This provides the benefits of static typing while still running on JavaScript.

Optimizing HTML5 Video

Strategies for optimizing HTML5 video on webpages include streaming, compressing the source video, and using a CDN. These techniques improve loading speed and user experience.

CSS Zen Garden

CSS Zen Garden, launched in 2003, demonstrated the power and flexibility of CSS. It showcased the ability to completely change the design of a webpage using only CSS.

Summary

Transcript

Web Development History

00:02 - 07:27

JavaScript was introduced in 1995 by Brendan Eich, who worked at Netscape at the time.
Netflix was launched in 1997 as a mail-based rental business.
Håkon Wium Lie is a Norwegian Web Pioneer and Standards Activist, CTO of Opera Software.
He was best known for developing cascading style sheets while working with Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Kaillou at CERN in 1994.
CERN is the European organization for nuclear research.

JavaScript and Web Technologies

07:04 - 15:27

The HTTP status code returned when a requested resource is not found is 404.
The HTTP status code that indicates the client must authenticate itself is 401.
A pseudo class is a keyword that can be added to a selector to style elements in a particular state or position, such as hover.
The JavaScript function used to delay the execution of a function is setTimeout.
JavaScript's strict mode makes previously accepted bad syntax into actual JavaScript errors.
Event-driven programming in Node.js is determined by events received at runtime and works using the event loop.
In GraphQL, to mark a field or type as deprecated, you use the 'deprecated' keyword after the field name.
XHTML was developed to provide a more strict and standardized version of HTML that was compatible with HTML.
When creating a new object from a constructor in JavaScript, myObject.__proto__ is equal to myConstructor.prototype.
Type eraser in TypeScript removes types during compilation and does not affect the generated JavaScript code.
To define a user-defined type in TypeScript, you can use type guards.
Filtering alone in JavaScript does not type guard, you need to specify the return type of the filter to narrow down the type
A closure in JavaScript is a function that returns a function with its own scope, allowing access to variables from the parent function
The FS module in Node.js provides asynchronous file IO, including both callback-based and promise-based functions
Using synchronous file IO functions like FS.writeFileSync can lock up your application, it's better to use promise-based functions like Fs.RightFile
Memory safety in programming languages ensures programs do not have undefined behavior related to memory management, such as null pointers or buffer overflows
Different programming languages have different ways of managing memory, some require manual memory management while others have automatic garbage collection
HTTP introduced mechanisms to reduce latency and improve loading speed of web pages

Web Technologies Continued

15:05 - 22:19

HTTP/2 introduces multiplexing, which allows the server to send multiple resources over a single connection.
Multiplexing is the process of combining multiple signals into one and then separating them at the receiving end.
Strategies for optimizing HTML5 video on webpages include streaming, compressing the source video, and using a CDN.
Streaming involves chopping up the video into multiple files and playing them sequentially.
Compressing the source video can lower its quality and file size.
Using a CDN serves videos from servers closer to the user's location for faster loading.
In JavaScript, creating a new object that inherits from an existing object can be done with object.create(oldObject) or new oldObject.constructor.
The spread operator (brackets) is not a correct way to create a new object that inherits from an existing object because it does not set up the prototype chain.
Function declarations define and save functions, while function expressions assign functions to variables.
A function expression is where you put a named or a named function into a variable.
Function declarations are hoisted, whereas function expressions are not hoisted.
The value of 'this' inside an arrow function defined within a non-arrow function is equal to the parent function.
A Typeguard is a checkpoint to confirm a specific type and ensure type safety in code.
A Typecast tells something what type it is, while a Typeguard checks what type it is.
The order of execution for tasks in JavaScript is macro, micro, rendering.
ES4 was the version of ECMAScript that was never finalized and scrapped.

ECMAScript and CSS

22:00 - 29:55

ECMAScript 4 proposed classes, packages, generators, and typing annotations but they were abandoned or reworked in later versions.
Meta classes and meta objects were dropped from the proposal but are now available through reflection and decorators.
Comparison in JavaScript:
The comparison of an empty array with a negation is false due to type coercion.
JavaScript's loose equality operator can produce unexpected results.
Criticisms of CSS early on and how they were addressed:
CSS was criticized for being complex and difficult to learn, as well as lacking important layout features.
Over the years, CSS underwent developments to address these issues, including standardized implementations by web browsers.

Web Design and Miscellaneous

29:27 - 37:08

CSS Zen Garden was launched in May 2003, demonstrating the power and flexibility of CSS.
Dave Shea, a Canadian web designer, created CSS Zen Garden.
Consider doing history episodes on major milestones in web development like jQuery and CSS Zen Garden.
Sick pick: a laser projector for outdoor use that works off battery and has auto focusing and casting capabilities.
Sick pick: a USB C charger with power delivery for fast charging multiple devices at once.
Crappy cables can be slow and unreliable.
Investing in high-quality cables is worth it.
Having dedicated cables for different locations makes life easier.
Sentry.io is a useful tool for tracking errors and exceptions in software.