[rglover]

esbuild is the gold standard. Its creator has done a phenomenal job (and it's still early in its lifecycle). It's the first time I used a JS build tool and didn't scream at the monitor when dealing with nonsensical APIs and error output.

Re-implemented a complex setup using it in an afternoon with very few hiccups: https://github.com/cheatcode/joystick/blob/master/cli/src/fu....

[maxfurman]

The "early in its lifecycle" part is the source of GP's worry. esbuild _seems_ great now, but based on the history of JS tooling, who knows what will happen in a year or two. Look at the recent example of the JS community's multi-year embrace and then rejection of Webpack. I would be nervous about migrating too.

[rglover]

I share a similar fear (generally speaking), but in this particular case I think the risk is worth it because the cost of setup is next to zero and the speed of the thing is unreal. If something catastrophic happens with the project years down the road, at most I'll have spent a few hours getting it wired up (worth it considering the positive impact it's had on my productivity).

It's not the usual JS personality screaming "wEbPaCk iS dEaD!!!lol" it's clear the author is thoughtful (observable via the project itself, the docs, and how he interacts with people in Github comments).

Restored my faith quite a bit.

[mst]

Plus if the author is keeping to go versioning standards they'll probably also keep to go compatibility aesthetics which bodes well for the future.

It's still a risk, but in this case one I suspect I'll also take next time I need to add a build step to a JS project.