React

Frontend

Facebook created create-react-app way back in 2016 to be the definitive “starter template” for production-ready React apps, using Webpack as the bundler, Babel for JavaScript transpilation, PostCSS for CSS transpilation, a bunch of local Node.js scripts to spin up a dev server and automate tasks, and (optionally) polyfills for porting Node.js-exclusive functionality to the browser. It was last updated in 2021 and is starting to show its age.

HTML/CSS/JavaScript bundlers have come a long way since Webpack – Rollup, Browserify, Parcel, ESBuild, Snowpack, Vite, Turbopack, Vinxi, Bun. Newer ones like Vite come with a CLI and a streamlined plugin ecosystem which replace what these disparate tools and scripts did before, making migrations, config files and tooling choices MUCH simpler for devs.

The legacy of CRA: memories of slow bootup times, package.json migrations gone awry, config files no one dared to touch, and a time capsule of the rich and chaotic history of the JavaScript tooling ecosystem. 🫡