Podcast Summary
Intel AI resources: Intel's resources at intel.com/edgeai offer open-source code snippets and helpful guides for developers working on AI applications using popular models like Yolo v8 and PADM, potentially saving time and resources during development and deployment.
For developers working on AI applications using popular models like Yolo v8 and PADM, Intel provides valuable resources such as open-source code snippets and helpful guides at intel.com/edgeai. This can help speed up development time and ensure seamless deployment of applications. During this episode of the Stack Overflow podcast, Ryan Dahl, the creator of Node.js and Deno, shared his journey into software development and the creation of Node.js in 2009. He left Node.js in 2012 but returned in 2019 with Bert Belder to improve the JavaScript runtime. They started Deno, which is TypeScript-first and uses Rust instead of C++ for implementation. Initially, Deno was a small project, but it gained significant attention and contributors. With the realization that there was a potential business opportunity, they founded the Deno company to continue building the open-source projects and commercial projects using the technology. When Node.js first emerged, most people thought of JavaScript as primarily for client-side programming. However, Ryan explained that programming web servers with JavaScript is similar to programming websites, making it a successful choice for server-side applications. For developers working on AI applications, Intel's resources at intel.com/edgeai can help streamline the development process and ensure successful deployment, ultimately saving time and resources.
Node.js and JavaScript connection: Node.js, built on JavaScript, is popularly used for web server programming due to its minimal IO capabilities and single threaded nature, with an estimated tens of millions of developers using it. Deno, a JavaScript runtime, faces challenges in building an edge function system due to security and performance concerns.
Node.js and JavaScript share a strong connection due to JavaScript's minimal IO capabilities and the single threaded nature of JavaScript, making it an ideal choice for programming web servers. Node.js's popularity is significant, with an estimated tens of millions of developers using it, and it plays a crucial role in powering websites through various applications like bundling JavaScript scripts. Deno, a newer player in the game, faces challenges in building an edge function system due to the complexity of handling untrusted code from numerous users while ensuring security and performance. The infrastructure, Deno Sub hosting, powers Netlify Edge Functions, and while it may seem simple, it requires careful consideration of security and performance concerns to efficiently respond to new requests.
Deno's focus on security and new abstraction layer: Deno is a cloud-based runtime prioritizing security and offering a new abstraction layer for server development, allowing developers to focus on their applications without worrying about low-level details, with support for serverless functions and WebSockets.
Deno is a cloud-based, multi-tenant JavaScript runtime focused on handling many users at once, with careful considerations given to security in regards to additions like file IO and WebSockets. Deno's architecture is serverless, meaning resources can be garbage collected at any moment, but WebSockets are supported for long-polling requests. The team behind Deno aims to create a new abstraction layer for servers, potentially surpassing the traditional Docker container and Linux syscall levels. This new layer would allow developers to focus on their applications without worrying about unnecessary details. An emerging abstraction layer, such as Deno Deploy and Deno sub hosting, is still under development and offers an alternative to traditional UNIX systems. Additionally, Ryan mentioned another project, JSR, which is an alternative to NPM, as part of Deno's efforts to level up the JavaScript ecosystem.
JavaScript ecosystem evolution: JSR is an initiative to extend NPM, offer modern security features, and provide a more secure and modern alternative for publishing JavaScript and TypeScript code.
The JavaScript ecosystem, being the most important programming language for the web, requires continuous evolution to address its unique challenges. The current issue lies in the incompatibility between Common JS and ESM module systems, with Node being slow to adopt ESM. This complexity, coupled with the stagnation of NPM and its security concerns, calls for a modern solution. JSR (JavaScript Registry) is an initiative aimed at extending NPM and improving the JavaScript ecosystem. JSR offers a modern place to publish JavaScript and TypeScript code, providing a superset of NPM functionality. JSR packages can depend on NPM modules, ensuring compatibility and network effects. Security is a major concern in the current NPM ecosystem, with instances of hackers taking over modules and injecting malicious code. JSR addresses this by implementing modern security features, such as sigstore, which provides increased visibility into the code uploaded by random users. JSR is not intended to replace NPM but rather to complement it, offering a more secure and modern alternative for publishing JavaScript and TypeScript code. The importance of the JavaScript ecosystem necessitates continuous improvement, and initiatives like JSR are crucial steps towards addressing the challenges it faces.
Trust and security in software development: Cryptographic attestations and signatures on a blockchain help ensure transparency and trust in the origin and build process of software packages, while Deno's secure sandbox and controlled permissions mitigate risks associated with running untrusted code.
The discussion revolves around the importance of trust and security in the development and distribution of software packages, specifically in the context of GitHub actions and Deno. The speakers emphasized the need for cryptographic attestations and signatures, which can be published on a blockchain, to ensure transparency and trust in the origin and build process of packages. This builds a web of trust and allows users to verify the authenticity and security of the code they are using. Additionally, Deno, a new JavaScript runtime, was highlighted for its security features, such as a secure sandbox and controlled permissions, which help mitigate the risks associated with running untrusted code from the internet. The speakers also mentioned the work of StackLock, a company founded by the co-founder of Kubernetes, which aims to address the security concerns and issues in the Node.js ecosystem, particularly with NPM. Overall, the discussion underscores the importance of trust and security in software development and distribution, and the potential benefits of implementing cryptographic attestations and secure runtime environments.
JavaScript Runtime (JSR): JSR is a new registry that enhances transparency and security for JavaScript packages, providing proper documentation, modern best practices, and a transparent ledger, aiming to trace all software running inside containers back to verified users, reducing supply chain risks, and designed to work alongside existing package managers.
The Java Script Runtime (JSR) is a new registry aimed at enhancing the transparency and security of JavaScript packages. It's an open-source alternative to existing registries like NPM, and it focuses on providing proper documentation, modern best practices, and a transparent ledger for packages. The ultimate goal is to ensure that all software running inside containers can be traced back to verified users, reducing supply chain risks. JSR is still in its early stages, but it offers benefits without requiring a complete infrastructure overhaul. It's designed to work alongside existing package managers, and it's completely open source and MIT licensed. The registry aims to help mitigate the risks of the open-source movement, where the origin of code can sometimes be unclear, and to provide better attribution for all dependencies in a microservice.
JavaScript future: JavaScript is essential for web browsers, ECMAScript modules and TypeScript are shaping its future, and the browser will continue to dictate its evolution.
JavaScript is here to stay, deeply embedded in web browsers and essential for the functioning of many online platforms. The future of JavaScript lies in closing the gap between browser and server-side code, with ECMAScript modules and TypeScript playing significant roles. The browser will continue to dictate the future of JavaScript, and TypeScript, as a useful superset of JavaScript with added types, is likely to become part of the standards over time. A great question from a Stack Overflow user was answered on the show, demonstrating the importance of sharing knowledge and asking questions in the JavaScript community.