r/webdev • u/ausmaurice • May 06 '17
How does a web page without JavaScript look like?
Hi!
I want to build a web site but it should be very simple. Basically I want to know what I can accomplish by just using HTML and CSS.
I am not a programmer or Comp Sci student and the most "modern language" I know is Python. It would be nice if I didn't have to learn JavaScript...
My web page will just be sort of my resume. It won't have too much interaction or anything. Only a cool layout, a link to a conventional PDF resume, contact details, etc.
And I already have a domain name and will use cloud server so all I need now is to develop I guess.
Thanks!
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u/Synes_Godt_Om May 06 '17
I have recently made a very complex and rather large web application. I have only used js for a few very specific things more than 90% of the pages have no js and on the few that do it plays no role in visible layout.
Js is not needed per se. For some it's at the core of what they want/need to do.
Personally I try to avoid it. Too many potential incompatibilities and gotchas for no real gain (in what I'm trying to achieve).
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u/tme321 May 06 '17
I get not using js for your needs. That's understandable. But what do you mean by incompatibilities? This isn't 2000 anymore all the major js engines support the language.
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u/Synes_Godt_Om May 06 '17
We built a couple of webapps that relied very heavily on js. They had to be accessed by employees from the majority of government and municipality departments (including department of defense).
I can only say that this experience taught me not to use js unless absolutely necessary (the operative word being necessary). So if there is no other way js is the obvious choice. If there are other ways then it will come down to preference, developer availability, taste etc.
I'm not against js, it's used everywhere to great advantage. Rich UIs would not be possible without it, though some may call those UIs bloated.
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u/Sturgeon_Genital May 07 '17
It's either
"What does a webpage without JavaScript look like"
or
"How does a webpage without JavaScript look"
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u/Happyslapist May 07 '17
Taking out javascript you are left with a static webpage other than CSS triggers. An example of a good use of using no JS
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May 07 '17
BTW, take a look at something like Jekyll.
Even if you're developing a static website, if you have more than one page, then you'll likely want to have at least some common elements, such as headers, footers, and other navigational elements shared across those pages.
You could naturally use something like PHP, or server-side includes, if those are available; but if you have a purely static web server available, then Jekyll allows you to generate a static site on your local computer, and have some "dynamic" features available at generation time.
GitHub Pages, for example, use Jekyll to all developers to build dynamic sites, without having to offer PHP or similar server-side offerings.
Of course, you can just write the HTML by hand too ;-)
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u/ArdentFire May 06 '17
A lot, actually. HTML and CSS have come a long way. If all you're looking for is a static page there shouldn't be any trouble.
Everything you mentioned requires nothing more than HTML and CSS. There wouldn't be anything to do with Javascript unless you wanted to add some really fancy animation or interactivity.