application/nd-javascript

tutorial

application/nd-javascript

application/nd-javascript

itself is not interesting.

application/nd-javascript

is a means to discuss evolving beyond

text/html

for transmitting applications. Sadly, because this capability does not actually exist in browsers, the following demonstration is faked. Whether a real implementation uses

 application/binary

,

application/wasm

, or another similar MIME--any or all would be welcome.

application/nd-javascript

is used for simplicity and because of its proximity to existing browser APIs.

Why do this at all? For many applications, we build executables whose core function is an interplay of generating DOM, responding to the user, and updating the DOM. Consider web application runtimes, such as

react

,

svelte

,

solid

, etc. These toolkits are for building applications--and ultimately, DOM nodes. Indeed, they can generate HTML, but that is an important secondary feature. Their primary objective is to make application development easier by applying tools that result in a predictable and maintainable DOM. Thus, if we have established that our primary application toolkits excel at

DOM-ops

, why is it then that we commonly burden ourselves with also generating HTML? Most senior web-devs have all heard of

VirtualDOM

by this point. Why is there no

VirtualHTML

(/s)? For server side rendering, why do we use DOM-first libraries, convert to HTML, then post-hydration, go right back to DOM? The answer is that we have to, not that we want to. Can we cut out the HTML middleman and operate with DOM from start to finish? HTML is wonderful DSL for documents, but for applications it is pure overhead. For applications, our community would likely operate on DOM directly if the browser would allow us. Imagine if all of the power backing browser's HTML engines were actually APIs that we could tap into at boot time!