Is JavaScript Part of the ‘Real’ Web or Not?
Has JavaScript become a fully integrated part of the web — like CSS — or is it still a luxury add-on that not everyone has or wants? That’s the question behind a question that blogger Jeff Atwood recently posed on a development site.
Atwood’s original question was “is it OK to require JavaScript?” In the specific context of his example, the JavaScript would only be required if you wanted to participate in the site — passively browsing and reading the site wouldn’t require JavaScript.
The resulting discussion in the comments is quite lively, with well over a hundred developers and users weighing in with their thoughts. The general consensus seems to be split between two camps: those who believe JavaScript is just another part of the web, and those who see JavaScript as an outside tool that needs to degrade gracefully back down to the web’s actual tools — pure CSS and HTML.
The chief problem for those in the later camp is that JavaScript introduces the possibility of cross-site scripting attacks, and requiring JavaScript essentially requires your users to be open to scripting vulnerabilities.
It’s a classic case of good technology being used to nefarious ends which makes some users hesitate.
I’m probably in the minority, but I run the Firefox add-on NoScript as a matter of course, and I have it set to deny all domains by default. If a site is interesting enough or if I consider it trustworthy, then it gets added to the white list. But otherwise, if you use JavaScript and it doesn’t degrade well, I’m likely to skip right past your site.
Got strong opinions on JavaScript? Let us know what you think in the comments — is it OK to require JavaScript? Or should you make sure that all your JavaScript features gracefully degrade back to HTML and CSS?
[via Simon Willison]
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