Wes and Scott talk with Anders Hejlsberg and Daniel Rosenwasser about TypeScript’s leap to native code. They discuss the challenges, trade-offs, and the decision to port TypeScript to Go, unlocking faster compilation, better concurrency, and new possibilities for AI-assisted development. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:38 TypeScript compiler goes native 05:24 Challenges in rebuilding TypeScript 08:49 How long has this been in development? 10:32 What does porting TypeScript to native entai...
Mar 11, 2025•1 hr 9 min
What are Web Vitals, and why should you care? Scott and Wes break down metrics like LCP, FCP, CLS, and INP, explaining what they measure, how they impact your site’s performance, and how to track them yourself. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 03:26 What each web vital means. Web Vitals Playground . 03:38 LCP - Largest Contentful Paint. 05:04 FCP - First Contentful Paint. 06:07 CLS - Cumulative Layout Shift. 10:58 INP - Interaction to Next Paint. 13:43 Measuring the impact. 14:22 TTFB - Time ...
Mar 10, 2025•23 min
Wes and Scott talk with Aaron Francis about Fusion for Laravel, a new way to seamlessly integrate PHP into JavaScript. They discuss how Fusion expands on Inertia, its potential for React support, and how it simplifies full-stack development. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:22 Aaron’s background in PHP Yii Laravel 02:27 What is Fusion for Laravel? Fusion for Laravel 09:14 How Fusion works 13:57 The benefits of Laravel 19:18 Invalidation and caching 25:20 Brought to you by Sentry.io 25:32 O...
Mar 05, 2025•54 min
Scott and Wes answer your listener questions! They debate Axios vs. Fetch, discuss whether Next.js is overkill without a backend, talk htmx and Alpine, dive into tech career transitions, and tackle everything from podcast ads to password hashing myths. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:55 Scott’s health update. 04:11 Submit your questions . 04:26 Is Axios still worth using over Fetch? shiki . xior . ky . 10:17 Does Alpine.js solve HTMX’s client-side limitations? Syntax Ep. 868: The State of...
Mar 03, 2025•1 hr 8 min
Wes and CJ talk with Paulus Schoutsen, creator of Home Assistant, about the future of smart homes, AI-powered automation, and open-source innovation. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:29 What is Home Assistant? 03:32 Web Components in Home Assistant Home Assistant Frontend 10:41 Home Assistant’s stability and longevity 17:05 Is Home Assistant the biggest open-source project using web components? 20:03 How does the native app work? 23:34 Code sharing between Android and iOS 24:17 Self-hostin...
Feb 26, 2025•59 min
Wes and CJ break down everything Cloudflare—from Workers and R2 Storage to Hyperdrive and AI Gateway. Get the scoop on what makes Cloudflare tick, the quirks of their ecosystem, and whether vendor lock-in is a real concern. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:40 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:58 What we’re talking about today. 02:48 Cloudflare Workers. 03:06 How Cloudflare Workers… work. 04:39 How Cloudflare Workers run. 06:05 Workers size limitations in JavaScript. 07:37 Cloudflare has the...
Feb 24, 2025•59 min
Wes and Scott talk with Daniel Roe about Nuxt and Nitro, demystifying the UnJS ecosystem, serverless deployments, open-source sustainability, and the future of full-stack web development. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 02:52 Daniel’s work with Nitro Nitro 06:01 What’s the connection between Nitro and Nuxt? Nuxt 09:23 What makes something an UnJS package? UnJS 12:55 Nitro’s built-in features 18:21 What would Daniel use to build an app today? Cloudflare Vercel Netlify 28:01 Brought to you by ...
Feb 19, 2025•58 min
Tailwind 4.0 is here, and Scott and Wes break down all the spicy new features, from CSS-powered configs to first-class container queries. Plus, they dig into Tailwind Oxide, @property magic, and whether it’s finally time to stop asking, “Why not just use normal CSS?” Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:16 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:03 Tailwind 4. Tailwind CSS V4.0 Blog . 02:53 Wes’ favorite new feature. 05:45 @property. CSS Houdini API . 07:28 The config is now a CSS file. 08:25 Tailwin...
Feb 17, 2025•25 min
Wes and Scott talk about the Web Audio and Web MIDI APIs, diving into how they enable powerful music and sound manipulation in the browser. They explore MIDI messaging, synthesizing audio, creative coding with music, and share hands-on projects, tips, and libraries to get started. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:17 Brought to you by Sentry.io 02:04 Fun audio experiments Bebot 05:32 What is MIDI? Web MIDI API 14:18 Advanced examples with WEBMIDI.js WEBMIDI.js 17:02 Outputting MIDI messages...
Feb 12, 2025•49 min
JavaScript is missing a built-in way to make variables reactive—but Signals might change that. Scott and Wes break down what Signals are, how they compare to React state, and how different frameworks like Preact, Solid, Vue, and Qwik are already using them. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:49 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 02:28 Why JavaScript needs reactive variables. 03:16 What exactly are signals? Signals Proposal . 04:02 Understanding computed state. 04:59 How signals differ from React ...
Feb 10, 2025•16 min
Is your app feeling sluggish? Scott and Wes break down the biggest performance bottlenecks—like bloated assets, slow databases, and waterfall requests—and share easy wins to make your site feel lightning fast. From smarter caching to preloading tricks, these tips will have your app zipping along in no time! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:58 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 02:01 What makes apps slow? 02:10 Loading too much. 03:26 Slow database work. 04:04 Slow server. 04:54 Waterfall reques...
Feb 05, 2025•55 min
Wes and Scott talk about the standard schema for data validation, a collective effort by various library authors to create a unified interface. They discuss the benefits, how it works, and its impact on developers and libraries. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:24 Brought to you by Sentry.io 02:44 What is Standard Schema and how does it work? Standard Schema Spec Fabian Hiller Valibot David Blass ArkType Colin McDonnell Zod 06:00 Benefits of Standard Schema 08:54 Implementation and usage 1...
Feb 03, 2025•14 min
Wes and Scott answer questions about HTML semantics, TypeScript, adapting to AI’s impact on web development, and the best and worst browsers for developers. They also tackle project planning, deploying SvelteKit apps, and navigating online opinions in tech. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:04 Best container element for a grid of products? 04:50 TypeScript null checks 09:44 Adapt to AI or get left behind Syntax Episode 870 13:13 Why did 3D never take off? three.js React Three Fiber Rep Fitn...
Jan 29, 2025•58 min
Scott and Wes explore the world of coding agents, diving into tools like Cursor and Windsurf that promise to change how we write and manage code. They discuss modes, workflows, and practical tips for experimenting with these AI-powered tools in your next project. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 04:12 What are AI Agents? Cursor Features , Windsurf Features . 07:25 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 07:50 Chat Mode. 08:11 Composer Mode. 08:55 Agent Mode. 10:03 Inline Chat Mode. 11:02 JavaScript Set...
Jan 27, 2025•27 min
Wes and Scott talk with Kevin Hou and Varun Mohan from Windsurf about the evolving landscape of AI in coding, and the future of software development. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:50 The origins of Windsurf and Codeium Windsurf Codeium Vs Code Cursor 03:14 Rethinking IDE UX 05:45 Will Microsoft eventually implement these AI features in VS Code? 09:27 The "agentic" editor concept 17:58 The future of software development with AI 24:37 AI in large codebases 28:22 Brought to you by Sentry.i...
Jan 22, 2025•58 min
Scott and Wes explore the experimental world of running TypeScript in Node, breaking down the differences between type stripping and compiling. They cover the pros, cons, and quirks of the current implementation, plus explore tools like tsx, ts-node, and even alternatives like Deno. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:41 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:29 Running TypeScript in Node. 01:45 Experimental Type Stripping. 03:17 TypeScript refresher. 04:05 TypeScript can be compiled and/or Type St...
Jan 20, 2025•18 min
Wes and Scott talk about the State of JavaScript survey, tends, popular features, and the evolving landscape of tools and frameworks. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:27 Brought to you by Sentry.io 01:16 The state of JavaScript Twitter fantasy football 02:27 Syntax features The State of JavaScript survey 05:27 Logical assignment 07:49 Strings 08:18 Arrays 14:16 Sets 2025 New Years resolution: use maps and sets more and objects / arrays less. 16:10 Browser APIs 22:50 Library tiers list 27:2...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 3 min
What’s the deal with Zero Sync? Scott and Wes dive into this cutting-edge database tech, exploring its real-time interactivity, blazing-fast performance, and how it stacks up against the competition. Plus, they break down setup, querying, authentication, and whether it’s ready for prime time. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:59 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 02:21 Today’s agenda. 02:52 What is Zero Sync? The Docs . InstantDB . 07:02 Zerobugs loading speed. 11:04 Real-time interactivity. 11:...
Jan 13, 2025•29 min
Scott and Wes look into their crystal ball to predict what’s coming in web development next year. From the rise of on-device AI to the vanilla CSS comeback, Bun’s big moves, and React’s evolution, this episode is packed with bold predictions and hot takes! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 02:00 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 03:09 The agenda. 03:40 Temporal Javascript api will ship in Safari and Chrome. Temporal Proposal . 06:23 On device AI. WebGPU API Dawn Native WebGPU 10:26 Models will pla...
Jan 08, 2025•53 min
Scott and Wes challenge each other’s knowledge on everything from array sorting quirks to browser isolation types in a rapid-fire trivia format. They dive deep into performance optimizations, TypeScript type safety, and HTML best practices while uncovering surprising edge cases that every web developer should know about. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:43 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:23 Question 1: Array Sort Default Behavior. 03:24 Question 2: Splitting Into Individual Words & Charac...
Jan 06, 2025•36 min
Scott and Wes ring in the new year, answering listener questions on the rise of durable objects, handling tricky tab state in e-commerce apps, and their top picks for headless CMS. They also chat about the future of CSS, deployment platforms, and whether Syntax beanies might finally be a thing! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:52 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 03:10 What Are Durable Objects? 08:25 CSS Anchor Positioning: Cross-Browser Support Update. Implement CSS Anchor Positioning . 12:48...
Jan 01, 2025•52 min
Scott and Wes look back at 2024 and share highlights from a big year for Syntax and the web dev world. They review their 2024 predictions to see what they got right (and wrong), and break down the major moments in web development from CSS improvements to AI editors and beyond. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:30 Changes to the Syntax podcast. 05:56 What happened this year? 06:07 React. 06:36 Solid Start. 07:04 Tanstack Start. 07:43 Remix 09:42 AI Editors. 11:53 Vite 6. 14:02 Bluesky. 19:52...
Dec 23, 2024•1 hr 9 min
Is Svelte becoming React? Scott and Wes explore the exciting updates in Svelte 5, including Runes, Snippets, odd font choices, and performance benchmarks, while discussing custom event updates, migration tips, and potential performance gains. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! Scott’s Svelte5 Overview . 01:27 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 02:06 What’s new in Svelte 5 ? 02:13 Runes . 04:47 $state 07:00 $state.snapshot 11:47 $derived 12:46 $derived.by 15:41 $effect 17:24 $effect.pre 18:05 $effect...
Dec 18, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Scott and Wes dive into the world of local data storage, breaking down the pros and cons of Sqlite, LocalStorage, SessionStorage, Cookies, and IndexedDB. They cover real-world use cases like user settings, offline data, and auth tokens, while sharing their favorite tools and strategies for keeping your data fast and secure. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:30 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:43 Why store data locally. 01:55 User preferences and settings. 02:50 Not logged in state (shopping...
Dec 16, 2024•25 min
Wes and Scott talk with Zack Jackson about Module Federation, and the innovative ways it streamlines collaboration across large teams and complex applications. Zack also dives into simplifying microfrontends, optimizing builds with Rspack, and his work at ByteDance. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:48 Zach background and role at ByteDance 03:10 ByteDance’s web and native apps How ByteDance Became the World’s Most Valuable Startup Lynx ByteDance GitHub Coze Lark MarsCode 06:48 What is Modul...
Dec 13, 2024•1 hr 11 min
Scott and Wes break down the tech behind video streaming for the web, from transcoding and variants to CDN and access control. They also share insights on tools like Mux, Cloudflare Stream, and ffmpeg, plus tips for managing bandwidth, hosting, and costs. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:50 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 01:15 The history of video streaming. 02:10 How video streaming works: The Tech. 03:54 How video streaming works: Transcoding. 06:37 How video streaming works: Variants. ff...
Dec 11, 2024•51 min
Want to level up your web dev game? Scott and Wes share their top tips for going deeper with your learning—covering everything from reading the docs and source code to finding mentorship and engaging with the community. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 02:48 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 03:54 How do you go deeper? 04:23 Pick a project and build it. 06:36 Read the docs. Svelte Docs . 09:07 Read the source. 11:19 Consume content: blogs, conference talks, etc. Dot Conferences on YouTube . GitNa...
Dec 09, 2024•25 min
Wes and Scott talk with Syntax Producer Randy Rektor. From mastering mic technique to lighting hacks and choosing the right camera, they discuss the best ways to upgrade your audio and video setup on any budget. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 03:01 Brought to you by Sentry.io 04:14 Understanding signal-to-noise ratio 06:48 Using de-noise iZotope Voice De-noise 09:12 The importance of mic technique 10:28 Dealing with electrical noise 11:15 The proximity effect 13:01 Sound treatment vs sound ...
Dec 06, 2024•59 min
Scott and Wes dive into your questions on Hono and SvelteKit, partitioned cookies, redirect codes, and using Rspack instead of Vite. Plus, they share insights on quoting projects, interview best practices, and whether you should slow down those speedy loading spinners. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:50 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 02:23 Apple developer accounts and certificates. 06:58 Hono, SvelteKit, and using them together. 11:14 Rspack & Rsbuild over Vite? Rspack , Rsbuild . Rolldown...
Dec 04, 2024•56 min
Scott and Wes dive into the Speculation Rules API and why it’s a game-changer for building blazing-fast websites. They break down how pre-loading, prefetching, and pre-connecting work together to boost performance while weighing the costs for both users and developers. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:49 Pre-loading, prefetching, and pre-connecting. CSS Wizardy . CSS Wizardy on GitHub . 02:06 Brought to you by Sentry.io . 03:16 Benefits of pre-loading, prefetching, and pre-connecting? 07:0...
Dec 02, 2024•24 min
