
RequireJS: a JavaScript file and module loader - jamesjyu
http://requirejs.org/
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ahemphill
What makes this different/better than Head JS, LAB, et cetera? If you're
familiar with the project, pitch us.

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maigret
Same here... Why would I use all these special (quite untested compared to
GWT, Dojo) JavaScript libraries, instead of using Dojo - which has already a
fine module layer as well as a build system.

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YuriNiyazov
I don't know why _you_ specifically would use it, but some developers prefer
to mix-n-match their toolchain rather than use everything from one project.

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gregory80
i feel like requuireJS hit hacker news last week, and the week before that.

I'm would genuinely like more information on the authors of this library. I a
little confused why their examples have the script tags in the HEAD of the
document, when it is well known that script tags block all other resources
from loading and should be placed at the bottom of the page.

[http://www.stevesouders.com/blog/2009/04/27/loading-
scripts-...](http://www.stevesouders.com/blog/2009/04/27/loading-scripts-
without-blocking/)

If the authors or developers have some magic to bypass this, besides just
drawing the script tags via JS as Steve Souders suggests, I would be excited
to see that presented more front and center.

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YuriNiyazov
An example for how to use RequireJS needs to be as clear and simple as
possible, and putting a SCRIPT tag into HEAD is still the clearest and
simplest way - the stuff that Souders writes about is Advanced JS hackery - if
you understand Souders, then you also understand how to rewrite the RequireJS
example to be even more efficient than it is.

One of the bigger misconceptions about RequireJS is that it's about
efficiency. RequireJS does provide an efficient way to load up the scripts,
but that's an important side benefit of the actual reason why it exists: To
provide sane modularization and dependency management of your Javascript code.

~~~
gregory80
thanx for the overview. Sounds like this falls into the same groups as LABJS
and ControlJS to some degree.

I don't really agree that putting the script tag in the head is a simple
example. The tornado web docs, talk about loading script tags last, and they
cover a lot more than just where is the best place to put script tag.

<http://www.tornadoweb.org/documentation>

I could buy the "it's okay to write demos with script tags in the head" bit in
the same why I buy it's "okay" to use document.write() examples b/c it's
'fast'. Which is to say, I don't buy either argument.

If requireJS is aiming at people who don't know any advanced JS 'hackery', why
on earth would that same dev know they need "sane modularization and
dependency management". They still think it's "okay" to load script tags from
the HEAD.

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warble
Dojo has many similar features - compilation, dojo.require().. might be a
consideration as well if this is attractive.

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unicornporn
omfg, that website is beauty itself. seriously.

