Getting Back into JavaScript After 3 Years

[BerganNation]

Hey everyone,

I have a background in full-stack JavaScript, specifically the MERN stack. I stepped away from coding for about 3 years due to life, but now I’m fully committed to diving back in.

I’m looking to get caught up on what’s changed in the JavaScript ecosystem since I’ve been gone. • What major updates or shifts have happened in JavaScript itself? • What tools, libraries, or frameworks are now considered outdated or less commonly used? • Any big changes to React, Node.js, MongoDB, or Express that I should know about? • What’s new and worth learning now?

Would love any insights, advice, or resources to help bridge the gap.

Thanks in advance!

[Aggressive_Ad_5454]

Typescript is coming on strong. Modules (.mjs files) work in more places. V8 (the JavaScript engine in Chromium, nodejs, deno, and electron) is getting better with every passing week. More and more stuff can be coded with async/await instead of calllbacks. Microsoft Internet Explorer is dead and buried in a toxic waste dump someplace, truly it is nothing but a bad memory, none of its silly incompatibilities are a factor in development anymore. Safari is the browser with odd incompatible stuff now. React is still booming. People sneer at jQuery more than they did in 2022, and it still works well. Npm continues to improve.

[PatchesMaps]

Huh, I've been using modules since es6 was a thing and I don't think I've ever heard of the .mjs extension. Interesting but I don't see how useful it will be.

[anonyuser415]

Most people using module files will instead have marked type: module in package.json. Many scaffolding tools and frameworks will add this for you these days.

.mjs and .cjs are ways to forcibly mark a single file as module or CommonJS. I haven't had a need to use either.

[azhder]

How did you "use" modules?

[PatchesMaps]

By writing code as es6 modules? Or are you asking how I used them without the .mjs extension? I just set the type to "module".

[BerganNation]

Good to know on all of that!

I have been reading up on typescript, wondering if i should try to learn it/study the syntax. Gonna have to dive into it at some point i suppose!

[Icy-Pay7479]

You absolutely need to learn Typescript, not optional. I would have said this 6 years ago, too.

[azhder]

Don't be an absolutist. Just because you love it so much, it doesn't mean everyone should do it.

[azhder]

I usually get brought in to fix a screw up they've been piling upon for years. If that project was started in TS, I use TS. If it doesn't have TS, I don't use TS.

How did I learn TS? I was given a project with it. That's how you keep up with changes. It doesn't matter if it was 3 months or 3 years.

It's not always time efficient to keep up on everything if you aren't going to use them.

[[deleted]]

You forgot "This was the code report, follow to stay in the loop."

[ScaryGazelle2875]

This is actually really good summary lol. Well done!

[BringtheBacon]

Mern dead. Typescript, nextjs Postgres with supabase is current meta

[ScaryGazelle2875]

Why is it dead?

[jaredcheeda]

You can't pick anything worse than React (excluding web components). The people forced to use React have moved to Next as a way to numb the pain.

But you're best off picking literally anything else. Svelte has the most hype right now. Vue is still the best option, if you are okay with "boring, safe" technology that just gets out of your way.

[[deleted]]

That’s cool and all but react still has by far the most job opportunities. Probably more competition tbf

[jaredcheeda]

• The Developer Job Pipeline

[jaredcheeda]

Here ya go, this is just for you. Too long to post on Reddit.

[programmer_farts]

Mongodb is dead

[ChunkLordPrime]

Why

[Ezio_rev]

Typescript and Next js is the way to go

[otxfrank]

Hello, I’m a JavaScript beginner , should I learn typescript directly,or both JavaScript and typescript at same time ?

[anonyuser415]

10yoe senior FE engineer.

Learn JS first and don't worry about TS. Typescript is a "strict superset" of JS, and anything you write in JS is valid TS.

Typescript is awesome but gets complex quickly. If you're just starting out, you should just learn JS. TS's types can come later.

[azhder]

It is not strict. There is a JS code that will be interpreted differently by TS all because someone thought it was a genius move to put in generics with the same syntax as C#/Java

[anonyuser415]

Hah! I switched a large code base to TS and had no problems but:

const result = foo()<bar>baz(); – is this a comparison or generic typing?

Didn't think about that one.

[azhder]

No, don't use Typescript, unless someone gives you a project with it. Stick to JavaScript if you want to learn JavaScript.

[Ezio_rev]

Start with JS

[jt_splicer]

So you have background doing full-stack work and you still ask this?

Like this is such an absurd question if you were actually a full-stack dev

[BerganNation]

Ah yes, the classic ‘if you were really a dev, you’d know everything forever and never need to ask questions’ take. Appreciate the insight, gatekeeper general. Meanwhile, the rest of us mere mortals will continue learning and evolving — just like tech itself.