When it comes to building app-like websites, JavaScript frameworks have taken the web by storm. Where does this leave seasoned Drupal developers? Should we abandon our favored languages in favor of JS? Not necessarily; Drupal 8 is a stellar CMS which is more than capable of standing on its own. Because many of the JS frameworks focus on front-end development, and thanks to Drupal's API-first work, we can combine the best JS frameworks with our favorite frameworks. Empower yourself by learning the ins and outs of JS to enable yourself to dive into a JS framework.

Certain things about JS seem strange when you are either new to programming or come from a PHP background: var, let, const, this, ES2015, ES6, asynchronous programming, various shorthand syntaxes, and more. We'll go over these and much more to prepare you for the brave new world of JS.

In addition to learning the "how" of modern JS, we'll also learn about why so many people are integrating JS so heavily in their applications. What can JS do that PHP can't? And do JS frameworks really provide enough benefit that we should invest in decoupling Drupal 8 projects?

This session is targeting:

• People who know how to program in some language (such as PHP)

• People who haven't used JS significantly recently, but may have learned/used it a while ago

Attendees will walk away having learned, primarily, about differences between modern JS and PHP.