I'm really into reinventing technology, and my current project is focusing on web browsers. I'm thinking of ways to change how data is displayed and how users interact with it, with an emphasis on accessibility and performance. Before I dive into this venture, I want to see if there are any alternative web browsers out there that support a non-JavaScript environment. Specifically, I'm interested in browsers that can interpret languages other than JavaScript directly. I know there are languages like Pug, Gleam, and TypeScript that compile to JavaScript, but I'm looking for a browser that can handle these languages natively. Ideally, I'd love to find something that runs an intermediary language and also has a JavaScript interpreter for compatibility. I'm also curious if there's a browser that moves away from the traditional DOM and uses a different API instead. Any suggestions?
4 Answers
There’s a fundamental reason JavaScript took off: building and maintaining support for multiple languages in browsers is costly. JavaScript is pretty much the only mainstream language now because it’s been optimized heavily. WASM is close but still needs JS for interfacing, and completely changing the DOM would mean creating an entirely new ecosystem and user experience.
The closest example I can think of is Dartium, which was a Google project for running Dart code directly in the browser using a Chromium fork. However, it never made it into Chrome, unfortunately.
This is a super cool idea! While most browsers stick to JavaScript and the DOM, you could explore the Beaker Browser for peer-to-peer web functionalities, or even Gemini protocol with browsers like Lagrange and Kristall that intentionally limit JS use. Also, Urbit and its Hoon language are unique approaches to rethinking computing, which might resonate with your vision!
You might want to look into WebAssembly (WASM). It's gaining traction as it allows other languages to run in the browser, but it still relies on JavaScript for some things. It's a good direction to consider!
Totally get your point! I noticed that there's such a heavy reliance on JS—the performance gains there are significant, and it seems like the web has standardized around it for good reason.