Why learn JavaScript? This is a question I’ve seen a lot lately, especially as the world of web development continues to evolve. If you’re like most people, you’ve heard it is a popular language, but you’re not too familiar with it. Conversely, maybe you’re already an experienced programmer who’s never given JavaScript a chance.
JavaScript is a programming language that is widely used for building web and mobile applications, creating games and visualizations, and powering many other types of software. It is an essential skill for anyone interested in pursuing a career in software development, and it is also a valuable skill for those who want to build their own web or mobile projects.
Let’s get down to why you’re here in the first place. Maybe you’re not sure what web development suits your style. Perhaps you just want to learn what JavaScript developers are thinking. Either way, why learn JavaScript?
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 1: JavaScript is Everywhere
JavaScript is everywhere. It is the language used by all major web browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. JavaScript is also used to create mobile, desktop, and server-side applications. No matter what type of application you want to make, JavaScript has you covered.
One of the prime reasons for its wide usage is how flexible JavaScript is, giving you control over how the website looks and behaves. It allows room for creativity to create some of the most stunning and mesmerizing web applications and websites.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 2: Easy to learn
JavaScript is the only language that I’m aware of that people feel they don’t need to learn before they start using it.
Douglas Crockford
JavaScript is a simple language to grasp. It is a high-level scripting language that is simple to read and comprehend. You can learn JavaScript fast and effortlessly if you have any programming knowledge.
One of the best things about JavaScript is that you don’t need a sophisticated setup.
You can start playing around with JavaScript right in your browser! Simply open the developer tools in your browser–in Chrome, this is (CTRL+Shift+i).
A standard developer setup includes Node.JS and a text editor such as Visual Studio Code, both of which are simple to set up. If you want to dive a little deeper and start exploring the language, you’ll get familiar with everything that comes with it as you build projects and ask questions.
Many libraries, browser APIs and language paradigms are considered easy to use. You won’t encounter concurrency issues (unless you’re using web workers and shared buffers). The syntax is straightforward and permissive (dynamic typing, for example).
Perhaps the best part that makes JavaScript easy to learn is that you can dig into someone else’s code. You can poke around and automate, fix, or modify a site’s behavior on the fly. As a result, the learning experience is very intuitive.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 3: Web Apps and Frameworks
The most common use of JavaScript is the creation of sophisticated Web applications. Front-end JavaScript frameworks like React are among the most popular. React uses a component-based approach to UI development. As a result, developers can build reusable and modular components to make it easier to maintain and scale applications over time.
Similarly, you can quickly create a high-performance back-end using Node JS and Express JS. Node.js and Express.js are both JavaScript libraries that can be used to build a backend for a web application.
Node.js is a runtime environment that allows you to run JavaScript on the server side. It is built on top of the V8 JavaScript engine, the same engine that powers the Google Chrome web browser. Node.js is designed to be efficient and scalable, making it well-suited for building backend applications that handle many concurrent connections or perform resource-intensive tasks.
Express.js is a popular web application framework for Node.js that provides many features and tools for building web applications. It is lightweight and flexible and provides some features that are commonly needed in web applications, such as routing, middleware, and error handling.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 4: Artificial Intelligence
While JavaScript is one of the most popular web development languages, its versatility makes it ideal for other uses like Artificial intelligence.
AI is becoming increasingly prevalent in business and consumer applications. JavaScript is a great way to bring AI capabilities to your web applications. JavaScript has excellent libraries for NLP (short for Natural Language Processing), such as Natural, which allows you to analyze and process human language. With Natural, you can create applications that can understand and respond to commands, as well as applications that can generate natural language descriptions of data.
JavaScript can be used to create AI chatbots. Chatbots are computer programs that simulate human conversations and allow users to interact with digital services. JavaScript has excellent libraries for building chatbots, such as Botkit, enabling you to create conversational interfaces for your web applications.
With Botkit, you can make AI chatbots that can understand user input and respond accordingly.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 5: You Can Use JavaScript for Blockchain
Yes, blockchain! Everyone’s favorite buzzword. Well, the truth is JavaScript is a popular language for a lot of things, and blockchain is definitely one of them. If you’re creating anything for the blockchain, a front will be made using React JS. Solidity, a language syntactically identical to JavaScript, is used to develop apps on the Ethereum network.
Node.js is well-suited for building blockchain applications because it is designed to be efficient and scalable, and it provides a number of libraries and tools that can be used to build blockchain-based applications.
Another way that JavaScript is used for blockchain applications is through blockchain libraries and frameworks built with JavaScript. The Ethereum blockchain platform Web3.JS is one example. Other blockchain platforms, such as Hyperledger Fabric, have JavaScript libraries and frameworks that you may use to build blockchain applications.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 6: JavaScript is Fun
If you’re going to spend time on something, it will help if it is a fun thing to do. Fortunately, while frustrating at times, JavaScript is a fun language to learn. It is a high-level language that is easy to read and understand. It also has powerful features, such as asynchronous programming and other helpful JavaScript hacks, which can make your programming experience more enjoyable.
JavaScript is an evolving language, and new libraries, frameworks, and tools are always in coming into the ecosystem. Exploring these new technologies can be a fun and rewarding way to learn and grow as a developer.
Collaborating with others is always fun, right? JavaScript is a popular language with a large and active community of developers. Collaborating with others on projects, participating in online forums and communities, and attending meetups and conferences can be a fun way to learn, network, and contribute to the JavaScript community.
Why Learn JavaScript Reason 7: JavaScript is in High Demand
It may be fun to play with JavaScript, but the professional demand for it is also high. According to the 2020 Stack Overflow developer poll, it is the second most in-demand language. As a result, 56.1% of developers have some interest in learning it.
Since you can do so much with JavaScript, there is an abundant need for programmers who are fluent in this language. Simply having more websites entails more work for JavaScript programmers. Indeed, IT support and web development are among the fastest-expanding business sectors overall, but JavaScript developers are riding at the front of the roller coaster on this one.
If you’re in it for the money, you’ll quickly find that it is much more work than it sounds like to get to a paying position. That said, JavaScript developers are among the highest-paid in the IT sector. Reports from Indeed.com show that the average JavaScript developer salary in the U.S. in 2022 was $102,102.
Bear in mind that employment in this wage bracket needs substantial knowledge of JavaScript and experience with other languages, soft skills, and professional writing skills, among other things.
Final Thoughts
A major benefit of learning JavaScript is its ubiquity. All major web browsers and mobile, desktop, and server-side applications use it. As a result, JavaScript can help you achieve your goals regardless of the project type.
JavaScript is also relatively easy to learn. This high-level scripting language is easy to read and understand, and anyone with programming experience can learn it quickly. Additionally, JavaScript requires no complicated setup – it can be run directly in the browser, so anyone can begin learning it quickly.
Overall, learning JavaScript is a worthwhile investment for any programmer, whether you want to play around with it for fun or you’re trying to determine how to learn JavaScript fast so you can look for a web developer job.
