I hate being sick. And Javascript.

Nothing like deciding to get back into the swing of things and promptly falling ill. I'm going to blame the weather.

On the plus side, all that downtime allowed me to listen to the entire series of podcasts on StackOverflow, which if you think about it, is quite an accomplishment since there are 19 episodes to wade through.

I'm quite excited for this project to go live. Simplified it's like Experts Exchange but good. Or at least, it hopes to be good. I have a feeling I'll be using it a lot, as I'm a bit of a sucker for absorbing "how do I do this?!" answers from respected people.

Anyhow all that is only a distraction from the topic at hand; that being, I hate Javascript. Of course this is not a new sentiment, but very cautiously, I do see hope around the corner.

Back when I was following the web programming world a bit closer (3-4 years ago really), Javascript frameworks like jQuery didn't really exist.

I haven't had the time (see: being sick / listening to podcasts) to delve very far into it, but the idea that I can be (largely) free of browser idiosyncrasies takes away a major component of my ire.

The other issues, however, are still quite prevalent. Nothing new about the "don't trust the client" meme, yet it seems no matter where you go, people are willing to use Javascript for things "It Really Shouldn't Be Doing".

I suppose my main criticism really is that the language makes it way too easy to misuse itself. I remember looking around Dynamic Drive back in the day, with a mixture of awe and scorn.

Moving boxes in my 1999 browser was a very exciting thing! Unfortunately, it was rather slow and pointless as well.

I love the subtle style Javascript offers when it's implementation follows the idea of Progressive Enhancement. I suppose what it comes down to, is developers having the restraint to use the technology wisely.

Ultimately though, It sounds like we're just at the start of seeing what Javascript is meant to do. With Google's new browser making an introduction, complete with zippy Javascript engine, I'm looking forward to seeing wonderful new things done with the language.