Why websites need to STOP overusing Javascript

Aractus 04, August, 2018

When I created my blog’s redesign I was originally not intending to use any Javascript. Well other than the break-out-of frames script that I’ve always used, and the inline scripting that Wordpress inserts here and there. Notice I actually do not use the wp_head() function. However, I use some scripting, although not very much hence the comment “no bloat” in the JS file.

Well I have bad news for everyone. The web is about to get a whole lot worse – as if it isn’t bad enough already.

Right now every installation of Wordpress worldwide uses the the TinyMCE editor. It’s simple, intuitive, and lets people who don’t know HTML format their posts easily, while people like me can use the source editor. This is about to change when the Gutenberg editor is made the default Wordpress editor. About 30% of the public-facing internet is run on Wordpress. I’m not going to go on about the negatives of the editor itself, but the fact that Gutenberg is heavily reliant on Javascript to work, and the fact that it will encourage everyone to keep making the same bland repetitive designs are two huge problems I have.

And this is the problem with the internet at the moment. Most websites are so Javascript heavy they are slow and sluggish to load, they look terrible because no attention is paid to HTML5/CSS3 design, and they cross-load resources breaching your privacy. Yes, that’s exactly what they do – that’s why Javascript frameworks exist in the first place. Whether it’s Bootstrap or jQuery. Their primary reason to exist is to collect data.

At the same time webmasters are getting worse and worse at actually developing their websites. They haven’t got a clue what they’re doing or how to do the things they want to do, so they load huge JS libraries just to use a couple of functions. It’s ridiculous.

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