Thirty years ago today, Netscape Communications and Sun Microsystems issued a joint press release announcing JavaScript, an object scripting language designed for creating interactive web applications. The language emerged from a frantic 10-day sprint at pioneering browser company Netscape, where engineer Brendan Eich hacked together a working internal prototype during May 1995.
While the JavaScript language didn’t ship publicly until that September and didn’t reach a 1.0 release until March 1996, the descendants of Eich’s initial 10-day hack now run on approximately 98.9 percent of all websites with client-side code, making JavaScript the dominant programming language of the web. It’s wildly popular; beyond the browser, JavaScript powers server backends, mobile apps, desktop software, and even some embedded systems. According to several surveys, JavaScript consistently ranks among the most widely used programming languages in the world.
In crafting JavaScript, Netscape wanted a scripting language that could make webpages interactive, something lightweight that would appeal to web designers and non-professional programmers. Eich drew from several influences: The syntax looked like a trendy new programming language called Java to satisfy Netscape management, but its guts borrowed concepts from Scheme, a language Eich admired, and Self, which contributed JavaScript’s prototype-based object model.
It’s fascinating to see how a simple hack from 1995 has had such a monumental impact on the Internet we know today. It’s a great reminder of how innovation can come from unexpected places. Thanks for sharing this interesting piece of tech history!
Absolutely, it’s incredible to think about how that initial innovation laid the groundwork for so many technologies we rely on today. It’s also interesting to consider how the open-source movement has evolved since then, fostering collaboration and innovation across the web.
You’re right, it’s remarkable how that early work has shaped the entire digital landscape. It’s interesting to consider how those foundational technologies have evolved and how they continue to inspire new innovations today.