If you've ever wondered why so many websites are a fragile JS hellscape, here's what a typical conversation in a web development channel might look like, and I think that tells you all you need to know
@joepie91 wow, people really don't want to write good code.
@joepie91 Things like this is what really intimidates me about web development, and what makes me really scared of making my own website
@Sparkwave Well, the good news is that all the 20-year-old techniques for progressive enhancement still work fine today! You can pick up basically any article on the topic, written at any time, and learn how to approach it.
The bad news is that with the deterioration of search engines, it's become harder and harder to actually find that sort of article anymore 😐
Either way it's pretty much just a culture/community problem. If you personally care about getting it right, then it's entirely possible to do so today! I still build things with progressive enhancement by default today.
@Sparkwave Also, it's actually entirely possible to build good websites without any Javascript. You have to trade off *some* functionality, but it's 100% possible to Get Stuff Out There Online without having a single statement of Javascript on your web site. Modern HTML and CSS have features that let you do without Javascript what Javascript was often required for previously.
Then you can add a bit of Javascript for what it's still good for.
Ergo, progressive enhancement.
@joepie91 translation "don't care, didn't ask, works on my machine"
And the worst part: most of the time these situations can be avoided entirely by "just not doing" something. And for most of the similar situations: with literally no drawbacks.
@samueldr Yep, that matches my observations. It's 100% a "caring at all" problem.
As some additional context: the other person in this screenshot is not a beginner. They are a professional web developer who has been around in this community for years, and who builds production systems.