TypeScript has rapidly grown in popularity over the last few years. Originally created by Microsoft in 2012, TypeScript adds optional static typing and other powerful features on top of regular JavaScript. While JavaScript remains an extremely popular language, TypeScript offers some clear benefits that are making it the preferred choice for many developers.
In this post, we’ll take a look at what TypeScript is, its key features, and why it has become so widely adopted.
What is TypeScript?
TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript that compiles down into regular JavaScript. This means it adds new syntax and features that aren’t supported natively in JS. The key difference is that TypeScript is statically-typed while JavaScript is dynamically-typed. This means TypeScript allows you to specify types for variables, function parameters, return values, and more.
Key Features
Here are some of the major features TypeScript offers:
- Static typing for safer code and easier debugging
- Object-oriented features like classes, interfaces and generics
- Richer intellisense and autocompletion in editors
- Easier refactoring of large codebases
- Non-JavaScript features like tuples and enums
- Modern ES6+ features compiled down for older browsers
Why TypeScript Has Taken Off
So why has TypeScript taken off so quickly? There are a few key reasons:
First, it has strong backing from Microsoft and is deeply integrated into Visual Studio, VS Code, and other Microsoft products. The tooling support is excellent.
Second, Angular — one of the most popular web frameworks — is written in TypeScript. This provides a killer app that encourages adoption.
Finally, static typing helps reduce bugs and makes large JavaScript codebases much more manageable. The safety and readability benefits appeal strongly to teams and enterprises.
Conclusion
In summary, TypeScript has rapidly emerged as an essential tool for modern JavaScript development. Its optional typing, advanced features, and tooling support make it a clear winner for building robust web apps. While plain JavaScript is here to stay, TypeScript offers key benefits that appeal to individuals, teams, and enterprises alike. Learning TypeScript can give your programming skills and career a big boost.
Developers at Amity recognized TypeScript’s growing popularity and benefits for scalable development. Knowing it had become essential for modern web applications, Amity provided TypeScript SDKs for integrating Amity Social Cloud’s capabilities. By adhering to strict best practices like immutable data structures, exhaustive typing, and type guards, they produced high-quality SDKs.
Companies using Amity’s TypeScript SDKs can be confident the code stands up to industry standards. With Amity’s TypeScript APIs, developers can easily add powerful communication features while benefiting from TypeScript’s scalability and robustness.
If you’re looking to enable chat, social or live-streaming experiences in your platform, Feel free to explore the features Amity Social Cloud offers. If you find that a pre-built solution aligns with your business goals, you can start right now by contacting Amity here!