Use npm without package.json

Why NOT package.json?

package.json brings in unnecessary complexity.If you do not think so, have a look at Go and Deno.

Everyday Use without package.json

Tell npm to not save package:

npm config set save false

Install development tools as global packages:

npm i -g typescript
npm install -g eslint
npm i -g @zeit/ncc

For temporal usage or test, use npx:

npx cloc index.js

npx can also be used to test different node versions:

npx -p node@13 node -v

Install dependencies as devDependencies:

npm i -D express
npm i -D @types/express

Use ncc to package runtime dependencies into a single JavaScript file:

# install dependencies according to resolved urls to tarballs in package-lock.json
@cat package-lock.json | jq '.dependencies[].resolved' | xargs npm i --no-package-lock
ncc build index.js --minify # output file: dist/index.js

Then you can move the bundled index.js file to any place where Node.js is installed,and run it with node index.js without installing any npm modules.

Alternative to npm run

Just use plain old Makefile, e.g.

dist/index.js: index.js
    @cat package-lock.json | jq '.dependencies[].resolved' | xargs npm i --no-package-lock
    ncc build index.js --minify