14 DAY TRIAL // The Node.js Foundation is preparing to say goodbye to the 5.x branch and release the next iteration for the Node.js framework, version 7.x.
Node.js uses a non-standard release model. Even-numbered releases (4.x, 6.x) are considered stable versions and are provided with long-term support (LTS) for at least two years.
Odd-numbered releases (5.x, 7.x) are recognized as stable versions, but the Foundation doesn't recommend developers to use them for live production environments. The reason is that the Foundation uses these branches to add (and test) support for various cutting-edge features introduced in JavaScript standards and browser APIs, which may sometimes break existing apps that ran just fine with the previous LTS support versions.
In an announcement on its website yesterday, the Foundation reminded users that, starting October, the Node.js 5.x version will be retired, a new version will be released, but again, not recommended for live and stable production environments, where 6.x will continue to be the recommended version.
In other JavaScript news...
The team that manages the Bootstrap UI framework announced two days ago that it would stop supporting Bootstrap v3, in spite of the fact that v3 is Bootstrap's current "Stable" branch. The reason behind the change is that v3 bugfixes are delaying v4's release, which has been in an Alpha release phase for almost a year, and a Beta release has yet to come out. The move makes sense, since v3 has been out for some years now, and it's time for the project to advance.
Google has released an experimental version of the Closure compiler written in JavaScript alone. The original Google Closure Compiler has always been a tool written in Java, which could take and compile "JavaScript to better JavaScript."
Now for some drama in the JavaScript community. Over the weekend, the people running the Nodevember JavaScript conference announced they'd be removing Douglas Crockford as a keynote speaker.
Rumors circulated that this decision was taken because of some comments Crockford made at another conference related to promiscuity. A later blog post from Adam Morgan proved this to be the work of bored SJWs (social justice warriors), or crybullies, as they've recently come to be named.
Softpedia was interested at one point in running a story on the subject, but when we contacted Mr. Crockford, he didn't seem to have a clue what everyone was talking about. After watching a YouTube video of the presentation brought up by his accusers, we found the accusations to be ludicrous.
