This a satire post about some arguments that you can actually find against Typescript. Through most of them are being exaggerated, they all represent an opinion of one or several people.
Typescript is not standard
Typescript is just a big amount of garbage on top of the most wonderful language on ever created, JavaScript, and it's not even trying to follow the standard of JS. I will give you examples of how TS does not follow ES standards.
Modules
TS has its own module system, called namespace. What is a namespace you may ask? It's a thing that Microsoft invented to totally ignore ES standards modules. I doesn't matter that ES6 modules wasn't really defined when TS was first announced, Microsoft should have know! Also, I don't care if TS now support ES modules, namespaces should have never existed and they should disappear!
Classes
Much like TS have namespaces, they have their own way to declare a class.
A class in Typescript:
class Foo {
bar = 0;
baz = 0;
}
A class in Javascript:
function Foo() {
this.bar = 0;
this.baz = 0;
}
And you may argument that I'm writing ES5 style classes, but even with ES2015, JS looks much better!
class Foo {
constructor() {
this.bar = 0;
this.baz = 0;
}
}
You can also say that when TS introduced classes, the JS classes proposal wasn't defined, sure. But why they are using class field declarations? They are not standard! (Yet).
Private properties
Well, JS does not have private members, but when it does, it will be something like:
class Foo {
constructor() {
this.#bar = 0;
}
}
Now, TS does support for privare members, but how does it looks in Microsoft language?
class Foo {
private bar = 0;
}
Ugly! And they are not even working on it! Aren't they? Like this wasn't enough, "private" members in TS are not really private, as you can access them with bracket syntax!
Typescript is not JavaScript
Take any current ES code and try to compile it with a fresh new TS project. You won't be able to do it. Because Typescript is not JavaScript! Not even a simple factorial function.
In JS:
function factorial (n) {
if (n == 0) return 1;
return n * factorial (n-1);
}
In TS:
function factorial (n) {
if (n == 0) return 1;
return n * factorial (n-1);
}
You now have two errors because TS can't understand what you are doing. You have to write in a syntax Typescript understand.
function factorial (n: number): number {
if (n == 0) return 1;
return n * factorial (n-1);
}
There you have it TS! Now you, and most likely any other person in the world reading only the signature, will know what the function is supposed to return, and what the argument type supposed to be. I don't want to write that. Why TS can't understand that I'm returning the same function that will eventually return a number? Besides, if I want someone else to understand my code, I'll comment it, or add unit testing. That's what you need for anyone to understand the code. Beside, that's an elemental function, what needs to be explained any way? You can't be so ignorant to not know what a funcional recursive pure function does!
And you may say that I have to change the compiler options, and disable implicit any for this error to go away. But I would like better for TS to understand my code.
The creator of Typescript knows nothing about programming
I will start that Microsoft is the father of all evils, and Typescript was created by Microsoft. It does not follow any standard as I explained above, and only was created to extinguish the web development as we know it. Always remember the Microsoft moto: Embrace, extend, and extinguish. That happened almost 20 years ago, but make no mistakes, corporations does not change! Microsoft is the same old company that wants to control everything!
Second, if you look up who is one of the main developers of Typescript, and most likely the one that had been shaped it for years, you will find Anders Hejlsberg. What does he knows about programming? Is an old man that knows nothing about standards. He just had developed programs like Turbo Pascal, and Delphi. And the only thing about languages that he knows, he had done it because is the lead architect of C#. I'm sure anyone in the community would do better.
People only use Typescript because they are used to OO languages
Developers that prefer use Typescript instead of JavaScript, are just frustrated that JavaScript is a functional programming and would rather ignore all the good features of JavaScript and write in the good old object oriented way, and becoming front-end developers wanna be in the way. You have to break the chains bro! You need to understand the freedom that JS give to you and embrace it! And you only can accomplish this if you use JavaScript the old fashion way.
Ok. I will be serious in this section, as this is mostly true. Most of the developers I know that are coming from a OO language, as C# or Java, will try to use TS the way they are used to use those languages. And that is a real problem. TS is not magical sugar on top of JS. You really need to understand JS in order to understand what is TS actually doing for you. If you don't, you will probably end up writing more code than you should, using anti-patterns, and creating more bugs that intended
You can't debug Typescript
Do you use Webpack, Parcel or any build tool that produce source map? Why? You have to stop and just write plain old JavaScript. Because if you compile down you probably will need something else to debug your code. It's better if you write code you can debug only by using the developer tools of IE.
Babel is so much better
I already said that Typescript is not Javascript. But Babel is. Is standard JS that compiles down to standard Javascript. Just compare it: Typescript vs Babel
Typescript is only used in Angular
That's why I don't like Angular either. I've never seen another project using TS. Let me repeat that for you I have never seen another project using Typescript. No one likes Typescript.
Flow is better
Because, why you want another file extension that explicit states you are not writing JS when you can just write types in .js files? Besides, it's support is getting better, with more projects being writing with Flow.
You shouldn't use Typescript
If... You are not confortable. In case you didn't notice it, this is a satiric post, about the people who complains about TS. I'm not saying you should use TS everywhere, I'm sure if you want to do a To-Do app, it would be safe doing with JS. But in my experience, if you are working with more than 3 people TS will help more than it hurts. And I have to say, when you don't know JS, using TS hurts a lot. But I don't think that's on the Typescript team, that's on us.
As developers, we need to learn every language is a tool, that will help us with something. Sometimes you need a hammer, sometimes you need a star key. Not every language fits to everything, and maybe you don't like to use a hammer when you are used to use a star key. But can't just shoot that every one that's using a hammer is wrong, or that they should instead use a star key.
You may as well learn how to use the hammer.
Discussion (101)
... where do I start. Let's do classes first. JavaScript class field syntax will in the coming months do exactly what typescript does, no more constructors or super.
Next modules, Microsoft are not phycic, Typescript docs actively discourage the use of namespaces, it is also very hard to deprecate something that legacy systems may rely on.
I could go on but I don't think I will get through (assuming your not trolling), your post may be illinformed.
If you think I'm a regular typescript user, I am not anymore. Mainly because JavaScript will be catching up with the proposals that both Babel and typescript implement. 😘
Edit: based on the comment bellow I should probably read the whole damn post.
Edit edit, thank god this is a joke, I have never met anyone complain about typescript mostly because the only people I know who talk about it have used it, mostly everyone else is at-least curious. I don't think this post will help the junior developer to be honest and could be really damaging. You should try as many languages (supersets) as you can, understand want sucks and the wtf's.
There are several articles out there pointing right at the core of the post. So, the argument is actually an extrapolation of true thoughts. :P.
I was like... Hmm bring it 🥊🔔. I should not drunk comment 🤣, I even made a rage post inspired by my annoyance. Sorry Micheal 😆
This was the post I write inspired by my annoyance. Glad you like it.
Typescript produce .js and .mal
You can use Chrome debugger reading that without any problem.
The factorial function you have posted is a lie, because you could set tsconfig.jsom to allow implicit any.
Angular? Nodejs and React (.tsx) can use typescript too
This post is Garbage
Why did you stop reading?
If you have to say that it’s satire, then it’s not good satire. The article is more damaging than helpful. If you like TypeScript then I can’t see why you would want to write an article like this that TS-dissenters will likely be reblogging to further their cause. This is due to the fact that most of the people who don’t like TypeScript haven’t actually tried it. And this article just proves their confirmation biases. Instead we should be clarifying why TypeScript makes many of us so happy.
Yes. That's the intention. People should learn to use something before they have an opinion on it. But most of the time they don't. They just read the title an make assumptions.
PS: if you another comments, there are plenty of hints about this being a satire post. You could also open the links for a few more. :P.
You're not getting it, if you want to write a good article about TypeScript, then just do so and be straight forward, instead of trying to "teach your readers a lesson about life" (and badly so), nobody wants to play your games and sit there in confusion trying to understand if you're being serious or not while reading your garbage of an article.
Be straight forward, people will appreciate you more...
The examples are wrong.
Debug: lie
Just Angular: lie
Not compiling .js: LIE!!
Do you always stop reading at the middle of the article?
Yes... But you could do a mocking post putting better things!
Arguments are real through. It wouldn't be funny if the arguments wasn't. For me at least.
With satire the reader knows what they are getting into. They are supposed to be shown very early on this is a joke.
There is no clear sign post here. You prompt the reader with a very strong word “hate” without then inserting a punch line anywhere.
It’s not funny.
It's a very bad satire to be honest, poorly executed, and is more damaging than helpful.
It took me way too long to understand the actual intent of the article. Well done😂
Disagree all the points.
Modules:
TypeScript is a super set of JavaScript, you use TS syntax in design-time and tsc to JavaScript code for runtime. (Just like most people us JS2015+ in design-time, babel to JS5 for runtime)
Classes
Private properties
today's status: "Public and private field declarations are an experimental feature (stage 3) proposed at TC39".
ES2 (1998) defined the reserved words: class, private, public, etc.
TypeScript uses "private" in class was a natural move.(unfortunately, not same as the es2019). But no break changes for TS developers, you don't hear them cry.
Typescript is not JavaScript
Of course you have errors for the factorial function (if using default tsconfig), that's the most important job TS does -- static type-checking.
The creator of Typescript knows nothing about programming
No comment. ( subjective topic)
People only use Typescript because they are used to OO languages
Not exactly, most of TypeScript (Object Oriented) features are being added to JS.
People use TS mainly because its static type-checking feature.
You can't debug Typescript
Why! I debugged TS in my first TS project.
Babel is so much better
overlapped in code trans-pile, but different others
Babel transforms JS code (high version to low version)
Babel uses TS (plugin) to transforms TS code
Babel uses Flow to transform Flow code
Typescript is only used in Angular
Yes, Angular is only framework forces application users to use TS syntax;
(you can use Angular UMD package in JavaScript, not popular usage)
Flow is better
Subjective. Flow is not standard JS either, it still needs to be transpiled.
Difference Flow vs TS, flow marks inline, but TS marks the extension.
You shouldn't use Typescript
my personal opinion:
my comment about TypeScript
pros: improve JavaScript code robustness, productivity (for experienced)
cons: learning curve high.
remember: TS is for static syntax type checking.
check this really big team experience sharing
youtube.com/watch?v=P-J9Eg7hJwE
It's satire. (I don't really get it though)
a bad one
I will write property about ts. Hope you like that as well.
I dunno, I figured out it was a joke right at the beginning:
Not sure I've met any JS developer who would write that down seriously!
I don't actually write any TS though so I have no opinions on the rest of the article's quality of humor ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Yeah, that statement gave it out for me 😁
Yeah... That should give you a hint...
Well, if you had used TypeScript, I might have had a hint... 😉
Sneaky! I was about to get angry, but then I read about the creator and it became too obvious :)
That happens when you only read headlines...
My bad. Bio updated.
Omg, I am not even sure you are even a programmer, if you were you'd know there are worst things than typescript like go-lang or reasonml or that little language that has errors horrifically done, elm I think it's called.
I am really sure you didn't read the whole thing. :P.
Or maybe I read too much and just proved everyone's point
I did. And the only thing I got from it is that you're bad at writing...
Hey there!
Lay off a bit.
It's totally okay that you didn't enjoy the article or the author's approach, but so many comments in one thread to tell them this is a bit excessive.
And no need for personal insults.
Is this a joke?
Yes but I don't get it either lol
It went on a bit so I didn't read it all.
Used typescript a few years ago. Getting back into it with React Native now.
Love it!
Yeah I skipped to the end because I was fairly sure. I'm using TypeScript for a project now and it's really neat.
Typescript is my favorite. All the fun of JavaScript, the type safety of Java and little to none of the biggest issues those two languages have on their own.
It’s only a PITA to get type definitions for 3rd party js libraries
You have to notice that you will never have the type safety of Java or C#. Those use an entire different method for type safe and they check on run time.
TS will check as far as it can, and would do it only in build time.
I think this is really important.
Smart. Maybe you should update your description where you say you like typescript to follow the same logic :)
Forgot about it! Thanks! :)
I totally understand what you say, but yeah expect a lot of Trolling back,
new waves of developers seems increasingly deceived by Marketing of new frameworks.
TypeScript types suck overall,
but for people that never really learn strong inferred static types, they do look like an improvement.
Lol, I was about to start complaining about this ridiculous post until I read: this is a satiric post.
Just the fact you said Anders Hejlsberg was a bad programmer should be a tip of what you were saying.
Congratulations!, you made me go from anger to laugh in a very short amount of time.
touché, my friend, touché...
xDD
Anyone who thinks javascript is the most beautiful language ever has mental issues. And Typescript is a stupid bag of garbage and I don't even really consider it a real language. They both suck monkey balls.
Welcome! :)
Well played, Michael. I was sharpening up my pitchfork as I was reading this. And then I realised that you got me. Bravo!
The next step we need to make happen is first class TypeScript support in browsers, embed the compiler right into the browser and let us ship TS code.
I would like that as well. But sure TS should enter a standardized process.
interesting though, although i like some features of ts. mainly the null or undefined checker. this forces you to code more precise and prevent undefined error, which, as you might know, is by far the most common and ugly to debug kind of js error.
I get that you're taking the piss, and that's all this is. A laugh. Nobody would seriously use this as an example to compare TS to JS. None of these points are valid, but yeah, let's all laugh at the Typescript noobs that don't actually know what they're talking about. Ahhh, the good life...
Hate Typescript. Sorry to disappoint you, but as I said, most of this points (if not all of them) are actually the point of view of one or more people who really think ts is bad.
I feel like the satire intentionally missed that it makes code sometimes unreadable, especially if the author has to use generics , R, S, T, U to make their typings work. This is a genuine frustration of using TS.
You know, you can name your generics as you want. If someone is using R, S, T whatever, and you blame TS for it, is the same as someone naming a variable a, b, num, and blame the language for it. Of course, it makes more verbose the code, but is the price to pay for a better UX while developing.
Lmao
Please please please take this article down. Idiots will not read all the way through and not realize this is satire. It's going to make people's lives unnecessarily more difficult.
Or at least put the satire warning at the top not the end.
By petition I'll. But in a couple of days. Let's hope no one confuse this and think is for real.
You can see by the comment about Haskell and buying VSCode that people are already thinking this is real. And those who don’t are still using it as an opportunity to trash TS.
"People only use Typescript because they are used to OO languages"
TypeScript has cool functional features like sum types and discriminated unions whose makes code more expressive and easy to read.
I think that's the section you should read carefully.
TS should using only by IDE to provide good type for vanilla dev.
TS is good if you build API logic.
But is hell for use in project.
Use js+jsdoc if your IDE support.
in most case you get all reference in your project.
If your IDE not understand your js file, add some jsdoc +ts logic.
And if is not work , well , create a .ts file !
But ts is the last choice.
Learn jsdoc plz, this is the good way to doc and make ref to your logic.
/**
* App
* @param {object} props Component props
* @param {React.ReactNode} [props.children] Childrens passed by parents
* @param {function(MouseEvent|React.PointerEvent):void} [props.onChange] - Using function():return
* @param {import('csstype').Property.FlexDirection} [props.FlexDirection] - Using Import()
* @param {React.CSSProperties['flexDirection']} [props.FlexDirection] - Using array ['propkey']
* @param {Container.prototype['props']['orientation']} [props.orientation] - Using componment propTypes
*/
Microsoft with vscode (IDE) work hard to give good jsdoc support mixed with TS logic.
typescriptlang.org/docs/handbook/j...
I understand the point, I came to Typescript from languages like c, c++ and rust just because of the strongly typed system, but I encountered many bad thing on it, generics are horribly bad implemented (the compiler does not infer the generic if there are too many indirections), the language lacks many functional features that reinforces your point, made by OO programmers to OO programmers, it would be great to have algebraic data types, unions, a better generic system (or use templates/traits). But still the idea is great in my opinion, an option that is done better in my opinion is haxe (compiling to javascript) but still not very popular.
This are actually the best valid points to "hate" TS. The inferences could work better, and I know they are working hard to make them work better without having to sacrifice performance. I understand that the main goal of TS is to balance between correctness and performance, but it still need some work in that. Recent versions of TS shown better understanding and better syntax to use generic, and there is even a couple of proposals to declare named generics, and to infer other generics members.
What you didn't like?
What is there to like?
I don't think I can tell you what you can like. But I can learn if you tell me what you didn't like. :)
Well played :-). I always say Typescript is a gateway drug for people who actually believe Javascript is a good or effective language. IMHO this is just a form of Stockholm syndrome.
As it preserves most of the madness that is Javascript for compatibility reasons, Typescript necessarily is a very messy, clumsy, and inconsistent language that allows for all sorts of very ugly hacks that have no place in a modern code base. Luckily, other languages are available and coming to a browser near you very soon thanks to WASM. Kotlin, Swift, C#, Ruby, Go, Elixir, Clojure, Python, Rust, C/C++, etc. All of them have WASM on their roadmaps directly or indirectly (by utilizing e.g. LLVM). Many of these are making this explicit. E.g. Rust is all about wasm this year and MS has included WASM related stuff like Blazor as a core part of .Net 5.
Some of these languages also have decent transpilers. E.g. kotlin-js works quite well, can reuse type definitions for Typescript, and e.g. Parcel added support for it some time ago. Likewise clojure script is a thing. However, javascript as a compilation target is a dead end as you would gain access to the same APIs from WASM, which makes transpilation to JS technically redundant long term.
Your article gave me a good laugh 😂
But you forgot the #jokes tag.
Ha-ha, well done, @michael! Happy I stayed put and read till the end. But not many people did!
Sorry, bad joke. Not even funny...
Sorry you didn't like. Maybe you'll like my other posts better. :)
Had me at the first half, not gonna lie xD
Not many valid points in the article. Conflicting syntax against ES6+ is probably the only one.
Yet, they used them.