Development » JavaScript

CoffeeScript brewing as variation on JavaScript

CoffeeScript, billed by its creator as "unfancy JavaScript," is in development as a language that compiles into JavaScript but offers a different sense of style.

By Paul Krill | 06 January, 2010 07:50

Tags: javascript

Highly anticipated open-source releases coming in '09

When big companies release new software, they launch it with lots of hoopla: press tours, technical conferences, free T-shirts. Open-source projects, even the well-known ones, generally release their major new versions with a lot less fanfare. The FOSS (free and open-source software) community is often too busy coding and testing to bother with marketing, even when the new "point release" of the software is really remarkable.

By Esther Schindler | 01 April, 2009 09:34

Tags: open source projects

Energized by open source: Ditching closed apps spurred growth, utility says

Six-year-old BlueStar Energy Services doesn't have the kind of systems-baggage that saddles many older organizations. Still, the company found itself hindered by the rigidity of its core systems, which constrained its efforts to expand its customer base and offer new services.

By Thomas Hoffman | 02 January, 2009 09:01

Tags: open source projects

Dynamic programming futures

What will the world of dynamic programming languages and Web applications look like in five years? This is one of those highly personal and deeply philosophical questions best saved for after dessert is served, the drinks are poured, and the sidearms are safely locked away.

By Peter Wayner | 14 October, 2008 08:47

Tags: programming, software development, perl

PHP, JavaScript, Ruby, Perl, Python, and Tcl Today: The State of the Scripting Universe

The former second-class citizens of the programming world have leaped to the fore, changing the face of enterprise software development. With the rise of Web 2.0, scripting languages (also called dynamic languages) are now often considered important tools in a developer's arsenal. That's a far cry from than their old reputation as lesser tools for those who can't handle "real" programming.

By Lynn Greiner | 01 September, 2008 14:45

Tags: perl

Developers rest easier with JavaScript reversal

The programmers in the trenches of Web development can breathe a bit easier now that a major committee planning the future of the JavaScript standard has decided to focus on small, incremental changes that will improve the performance in Web browsers. Some members of the ECMA International standards committee still have bigger dreams to enhance the language, known more formally as ECMAScript, to tackle more complicated projects, but these plans receded as the group focused on clearer and more present needs.

By Peter Wayner | 29 August, 2008 11:34

Tags: javascript

Can JavaFX make a play for rich Internet apps?

With its new JavaFX technology for rich Internet applications, Sun Microsystems hopes to leverage the strength of the Java development base and Java's ubiquitous presence on devices to make a strong run in a race it has entered very late -- and where Adobe Systems and Microsoft have a huge head start.

By Paul Krill | 28 August, 2008 11:19

Tags: javafx

JavaScript 2's new direction

Standardization efforts for the next version of JavaScript have taken a sharp turn this month, with some key changes in the Web scripting technology's direction. JavaScript creator Brendan Eich, CTO of Mozilla, has helped forge a consensus on how to proceed with the direction for JavaScript's improvements. "JavaScript was sitting still. It was stagnant," he says.

By Paul Krill | 27 August, 2008 08:40

Tags: JavaScript 2

Ex-inmates apply open source to rehabilitation

Ric Moore and Dennis Gaddy met in prison, and started to discuss how Open Source software and methods could help other inmates to avoid further mistakes and get better chance to start over after their term. In this interview, Ric explains how they are doing it through the NuOAR program and why.

Greasemonkey scripts to turbocharge your browser

The Internet offers a wealth of excellent tools, information, and entertainment--and it asks very little from us in return. So don't get upset when a poorly designed online tool or site gets on your nerves; instead, use Greasemonkey, a free Firefox add-on that harnesses the power of JavaScript to right usability wrongs and improve the functionality of specific Web sites and of the Internet at large.

Scripting languages spark new programming era

The era of scripting languages is opening up programming to the masses and extending the Web as an application platform.