Babylon.js 3.0 Released, Supports WebGL 2
Babylon.js, Microsoft's native JavaScript-based 3D game engine, has reached version 3. The new version supports WebGL 2 and includes a rewritten component for handling physical based rendering (PBR). In addition, developers can use the playground, an in-browser editor, and Spector, a WebGL debugger.
Angular 4.3 Brings New HttpClient and More
Angular 4.3, the last 4.x release before Angular 5, is a drop-in replacement for previous versions and includes a number of new features, including a new HttpClient module, new router life cycle events, and more.
Q&A with Kyle Mathews, Creator of React-Based Static Site Generator Gatsby
The React-based static site generator, Gatsby, has reached version 1.0. In this interview, founder Kyle Mathews discusses the project's motivations, and how it's going to move forward.
Microsoft Releases TypeScript 2.4
Microsoft has released version 2.4 of TypeScript. This version adds support for dynamic imports -- an ECMAScript 2018 feature -- and string-based enums.
Mozilla Retools MDN to Improve Web Documentation
Mozilla has announced their plans to retool MDN, renaming it MDN Web Docs, separating it from the product documentation. Among developers, MDN is known as as one of the go-to places for high quality documentation. Mozilla wants to "solidify MDN as the single best resource for Web docs".
Safari 11 Adds Missing Features, Improves Privacy by Default
Apple has taken the wraps off Safari 11, the newest version of their web browser. Available on iOS and MacOS, the browser now includes WebRTC and WebAssembly. Also included is a new tracking blocker that purports to reduce the ability for third-parties to track users as they move around the web.
WebKit Now Has Full Support for WebAssembly
Apple Safari has full support for WebAssembly including preparation for future integration with ECMAScript Modules and threads.
Node.js 8.0 Released, New LTS Version Later This Year
Node.js 8.0 has been released, setting up the future Long Term Support (LTS) version for late 2017 and 2018. This new version contains a number of new features as well. Once 8.X LTS releases later this year, it will be the first LTS release that contains async/await.
Zero Runtime Exceptions in Production with Elm
At QCon London 2017, Richard Feldman, software engineer at noredink and author of “Elm in Action” from Manning, explained how their decision to switch to Elm led to a 100,000 LOC system running in production with zero runtime exceptions since 2015. Here, we provide a brief summary of Feldman’s key points.
Google Is to Remove Support for PNaCl
After de-staffing the PNaCL/NaCl team last year and adding default support for WebAssembly in Chrome in March of this year, Google has officially announced the retirement of PNaCl in favor of WebAssembly.
Npm 5.0 Boosts Common Sense Performance
Npm 5.0 is a highly anticipated release that has been years in coming. The new version of the JavaScript package manager has a completely rewritten cache and has performance that is more in-line with its most direct competitor.
Updates to Google Chrome DevTools
The upcoming version of Chrome DevTools has a number of new features that can help developers build faster web pages and have an easier time debugging complex asynchronous code. At Google I/O 2017, Paul Irish presented a State of the Union showcasing a number of these new features.
Shoutem Aims to Be the WordPress of React Native Mobile Apps
Shoutem has recently launched its new React Native-based app builder, which is being presented to developers as the WordPress for mobile apps. InfoQ has spoken with Shoutem's VP of marketing, Robert Sekulić.
Prepack JavaScript Compiler Aims to Reduce Startup Time
Facebook has revealed Prepack, a compile time JavaScript interpreter that aims to reduce the time spent initializing code by pre-computing the global code block. The biggest beneficiaries of this tool are React Native apps and other platforms where startup time is one of the biggest performance bottlenecks.
React Fiber: A Closer Look at the New Engine of React
Facebook is working on a completely new architecture underpinning React, their popular JavaScript framework. The new design, dubbed React Fiber, alters how and when changes are detected in order to improve perceived responsiveness on browsers and other rendering targets. React Fiber will be launched in version 16 and should be a drop-in replacement for most React apps.
