HTML, HTTP, and React

Sam and Ryan share their thoughts on the latest server-centric developments taking place among React frameworks like Remix and Next.js. They discuss the declarative nature of HTML and HTTP, the evolution of frontend development from imperative libraries like jQuery to declarative libraries like React, why developers started creating SPAs in the first place, the power and limitations of server-side links and forms, whether the frontend community has overcomplicated web development, the problem with progressive enhancement, React Server Components, how server-centric approaches to building rich web experiences like Phoenix LiveView compare to the approaches in the React ecosystem, and other topics.

Topics include:

• 0:00 - Intro
• 3:02 - The strengths of HTML and HTTP
• 11:28 - Is frontend development overcomplicated?
• 21:18 - Progressive enhancement
• 33:33 - The nervous system of a web app
• 46:00 - React Server Components
• 53:46 - Server-side approaches

Links:

• My first Remix app on Build UI