Somewhere in an alternate universe, the web stayed polite.
Pages loaded. Links were blue. Nothing moved. Nobody got asked to accept cookies. Your toaster never needed a firmware update.
And then JavaScript showed up and said, “What if… the button did something?”
If you’ve ever wondered how we went from “Here is a nice webpage about castles” to “My fridge is asking me to log in,” JavaScript is a huge part of that story. It’s also the reason half the internet feels like it was built by caffeinated raccoons… and I mean that with love.
For context, yes, I somehow built entire series around things like Web3 and testing before doing a proper “Top Languages” run. So here we are, righting that cosmic imbalance, one wildly popular language at a time, starting with Episode 6.
If you want extra reading fuel:
What is it?
JavaScript is a programming language primarily used to make websites interactive.
It runs in your browser. It can also run on servers thanks to Node.js at https://nodejs.org/en.
So yes: the same language that powers “animate this dropdown” can also power “process millions of payments,” “stream video,” and “control my smart lights that now refuse to turn off until I update an app.”
Progress!
For the best “start here” docs, MDN is the friendly on-ramp at https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript.
Is it still relevant?
JavaScript is not just relevant.
JavaScript is inescapable.
If the internet is a city, JavaScript is the electrical grid. You don’t see it until it breaks, and then suddenly everyone is outside yelling, “WHY IS THE CHECKOUT BUTTON JUST… VIBRATING?”
Even the popularity charts keep it stubbornly near the top. The TIOBE index for December 2025 has JavaScript sitting at #6: https://www.tiobe.com/tiobe-index/.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Everywhere by default. Browsers speak JavaScript natively. No install. No ceremony. Just you and your questionable decisions.
- Massive ecosystem. Need a date library? A web server? A tool that converts a CSV into a haiku? The npm registry probably has it: https://www.npmjs.com/.
- Fast enough for serious work. Modern engines like V8 (the one used by Chrome and Node.js) are absolute monsters: https://v8.dev/.
- Great for UI work. The web’s primary “make it interactive” language, period.
Cons:
- Historical weirdness. It has corners shaped like “1995 was a stressful year.”
- It’s easy to write code that works… until it doesn’t. JavaScript will happily let you build a mansion out of spaghetti. The mansion may even pass QA. The first windy day, though? Good luck.
- Dependency chaos is real. The ecosystem is amazing, and also occasionally feels like adopting a hundred cats because one of them might be good at taxes.
- Security and supply chain risk. The larger the ecosystem, the more you need good habits: lockfiles, audits, and not installing “totally-not-a-virus-helper-9000.”
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths:
- Speed of creation. You can go from idea to working prototype fast.
- Front-end and back-end with one language. That’s real leverage for teams and solo builders.
- Async-first mindset. The language grew up in a world of networks, events, and user clicks. It shows.
Weaknesses:
- Footguns. JavaScript has a few “classic hits” that every dev steps on once, like a rite of passage. (Your second step is writing a blog post about it.)
- Large apps need discipline. Without conventions and tooling, big JS codebases can turn into a reality show called Keeping Up With The Side Effects.
What is it used for?
- Web apps (dashboards, social platforms, e-commerce, tools)
- Servers and APIs (Node.js, serverless functions)
- Mobile apps (via frameworks that compile or embed JS runtimes)
- Desktop apps (Electron-style apps)
- Games, creative coding, data visualization
- Automation scripts (build tooling, CI helpers, little glue scripts that keep the world from falling apart)
Basically: if it’s on a screen and it moves, JavaScript probably had a meeting about it.
Can you give me an example?
Here’s a tiny JavaScript example that fetches data and updates the page, because JavaScript loves two things: network calls and making the UI do a little dance.
async function loadJoke() {
const res = await fetch("https://api.chucknorris.io/jokes/random");
const data = await res.json();
const el = document.getElementById("joke");
el.textContent = data.value;
}
document.getElementById("btn").addEventListener("click", loadJoke);
You click a button, it grabs data, it updates the page. That pattern is basically the internet’s heartbeat.
What are the alternatives?
Depends on what you’re doing:
- In the browser: You don’t truly “replace” JavaScript. You can compile other languages to JavaScript or WebAssembly, but the browser ecosystem still expects JS as the social language.
- On the server: Plenty of options (Python, Go, Java, C#, Rust). JavaScript wins when you want fast iteration, huge package availability, and a single-language full-stack story.
- For sanity at scale: TypeScript exists specifically because people love JavaScript but also love not guessing what a variable is at 2:00 AM: https://www.typescriptlang.org/.
Is it the subject of any famous art?
Not in the “painted by a master” sense.
But spiritually?
JavaScript is performance art.
It’s improvisational theater where the audience is millions of users and the stage manager is a browser that updates itself whenever it feels like it.
If someone ever hangs a gallery piece titled “Undefined Is Not A Function,” the entire internet will nod in solemn remembrance.
How popular is it, and is it going up or down?
By most measures, JavaScript remains one of the most widely used languages on earth. In TIOBE’s long-term table, it’s been floating near the top for decades, and in December 2025 it’s still #6: https://www.tiobe.com/tiobe-index/.
If you want the honest vibe check: it’s not a fad, it’s infrastructure.
When was it most popular?
JavaScript has had multiple “waves,” but the biggest inflection points were:
- When the web shifted from “documents” to “applications”
- When Node.js made server-side JavaScript mainstream
- When the modern framework era turned “websites” into “tiny operating systems in your tab”
In other words: it didn’t peak once. It just kept finding new ways to show up in your life uninvited.
What is its history?
JavaScript was created at Netscape in the mid-1990s, and it shipped quickly, then grew up in public. The short version: it was born in a browser war and raised by the entire internet.
If you want the history in one place, the JavaScript overview is here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JavaScript.
Who invented it?
Brendan Eich is credited with creating JavaScript while at Netscape.
(Imagine being responsible for that. You’d never be able to order coffee without someone bringing up semicolons.)
What companies use it the most?
If a company has:
- a website,
- a web app,
- a mobile app,
- a backend,
- or a “sign in to continue” button…
They use JavaScript somewhere.
It powers front ends across basically every industry, and Node.js runs server workloads at all scales — from scrappy startups to “this site has more traffic than some countries.”
Is it similar to anything else?
JavaScript looks a little like Java and C-family syntax, but it behaves like its own thing.
It’s dynamically typed, prototype-based, and event-driven at heart. If you come from C++/C# land, you’ll recognize the braces… and then immediately encounter a feature that makes you stare into the middle distance for a full minute.
Does it work well with AI?
Yes, especially because:
- AI tools are great at generating boilerplate UI code and glue code
- JavaScript projects have lots of repeatable patterns (components, requests, state)
- You can prototype quickly, which pairs well with “try five versions and keep the best one”
Just remember: AI can write JavaScript confidently even when it’s wrong, which makes it emotionally identical to a senior engineer on their third espresso.
What tech stack does it work with?
JavaScript sits comfortably with:
- Browsers + web APIs
- Node.js servers
- Databases of every flavor
- Cloud platforms and serverless functions
- Modern front-end frameworks and build tooling
- TypeScript if you want guardrails and fewer surprise plot twists
What tools work best with it?
- A modern editor (with good linting and formatting)
- TypeScript when the project grows
- A package manager workflow you trust
- Tests and CI so you don’t deploy vibes
And yes: dependency hygiene matters. JavaScript isn’t fragile — people’s habits are.
How much is it going to cost me?
The language itself is free.
The real costs show up in:
- Hosting (if you deploy servers)
- Engineering time (especially for large apps)
- Tooling and maintenance
- Dependency management (time is money, and npm has opinions)
For small projects, the cost can be basically “your laptop and your stubbornness.” For production systems, it’s the usual story: infrastructure and discipline.
Any other interesting tidbits?
- JavaScript can be both delightful and chaotic in the same file.
- It’s the rare language where beginners can make visible progress quickly, and experts can still argue passionately about the correct way to do a loop.
- It’s also proof that “ship fast” can evolve into “run the world,” for better and for… browser notifications.
Final thought
If you’re learning JavaScript: you’re not late.
You’re learning the language that the modern internet can’t stop using. It’s still evolving, still wildly employable, and still the quickest way to go from idea to “I made a thing, and it’s alive.”
If you’ve got a JavaScript hot take, drop it in the comments.
If you’ve got a JavaScript horror story, definitely drop it in the comments.
And if you want more episodes like this, follow me here: https://medium.com/@DaveLumAI.
Art Prompt (De Stijl): Une composition géométrique rigoureuse faite de rectangles et de carrés parfaitement alignés, séparés par des lignes noires épaisses et nettes. Palette minimaliste avec de grands aplats de blanc cassé, rehaussés par quelques blocs de rouge primaire profond, de bleu cobalt et de jaune éclatant. Sensation de calme mathématique et d’équilibre absolu, comme un ordre invisible qui tient le monde en place. Lumière douce et uniforme, texture mate légèrement granuleuse, présence muséale, moderniste et intemporelle.
Video Prompt: Animer une composition géométrique ultra nette de rectangles et carrés séparés par des lignes noires épaisses. Les blocs de couleur (rouge, bleu, jaune) glissent et se verrouillent en place avec des mouvements saccadés et satisfaisants, comme un puzzle magnétique. Les lignes se dessinent en “snap” rythmés, les formes pulsent légèrement au beat, et de petites micro-vibrations donnent une énergie moderne. Transitions rapides par “wipe” rectiligne, zooms brefs et précis, et un final où tout s’aligne parfaitement dans un silence visuel élégant.
Song recommendations for the video:
- Run Boy Run — Woodkid
- Goliath — Woodkid
