This is what they said about React when it first blew up. Compared to Angular, it's much closer to being *just javascript™*. But I wonder how well that'll hold up after the honeymoon phase
The builder.io team made a tool called Mitosis[^0] that lets you input a component written in almost any framework and automatically recreate that same component in any other framework including Vue, React, Qwik, Angular, Svelte, React Native, Lit, web components, and even Swift
It's always interesting to try out different frameworks and compare the plain HTML version of certain components with this tool
> This is what they said about React when it first blew up
FWIW, I think that "it's much closer to being just javascript™" statement has absolutely held up over time (Angular, esp. the old angular.js is painful compared to React for this reason), AND that Svelte is likely a step closer again (which they can do because they have an entire compiler and aren't reliant on embedded a DSL inside of JavaScript).
I agree Svelte is a step closer, but most people agree that modern React has at least somewhat strayed from just javascript™. Server components by default, hooks, JSX, synthetic events, etc have added many more layers of abstraction. I fully support these developments. I just think they're a necessary byproduct of a project maturing. I fear that if Svelte ever blows up past a niche framework, it will also stray from it's "use the platform" philosophy out of necessity as well
Unlike React/JSX, Svelte uses ASTs that adhere to HTML, JavaScript, and CSS (non-JSX) format. Yes, there is a minimal Svelte-only API footprint, but the native AST parsers means that parsing is much more respectful of correct code validation, versus JSX's own idiomatic set of ThingsYouCannotDo™.
The builder.io team made a tool called Mitosis[^0] that lets you input a component written in almost any framework and automatically recreate that same component in any other framework including Vue, React, Qwik, Angular, Svelte, React Native, Lit, web components, and even Swift
It's always interesting to try out different frameworks and compare the plain HTML version of certain components with this tool
[^0]: https://mitosis.builder.io/