Swap.js
Languages and libraries
javascript micro-framework
SHOW HN2023
127points
45comments
#494of 3,109 in 2023
Top 16%of 2023 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
7 positive, 8 neutral or asking, 1 mixed, 4 critical, out of 20 comments about the project. Thread score +0.20.
Idea: 2 for, 3 againstExecution: 3 for, 0 againstDesign: 2 for, 0 againstPrivacy: 0 for, 1 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Tiny size and readable source with no build tools needed
From 4 comments
> vanilla JS (no external tool needed: no bundler, no webpack, no TypeScript compiler, no minification needed...) Nice, I like that. I dread the modern way of having to jump…
janwillemb on HNI read through the swap.js file and there's a lot of things happening. I also like the fact that it has no dependencies and it's cool that it achieves so much with so little code.
harha_ on HNWow. That is beautiful. So concise and yet easy to understand.
victorbjorklund on HNImpressive, especially considering the implementation size. Just by looking at swap.js file, I could not actually believe it really works but it clearly gets the job done.
garganzol on HN
Similar to HTMX and pjax, a welcome return of ajax-style navigation
From 3 comments
I'm getting a bit of deja vu from this recebt rediscovery of ajax but i really like it. Back when js was obscure and jQuery became ubiquitous, that practice was a go to and sites…
krsdcbl on HNI like it, but it feels funny to have this discussion without acknowledging this is really similar to pjax/turbolinks. Ok, now I'm feeling better; carry on!
wryun on HNThis is much better than htmx. I like the focus on just swapping content
ulrischa on HN
Objections
Only supports GET links, not form POSTs, so limited for real sites
From 2 comments
Lib is EXTREMELY minimal. Only GET requests with anchor tags. That you can’t POST forms or send metadata make it mostly useless for anything but the most basic website. I guess…
devmunchies on HNIt's not about the POSTing. Its how you handle the response. The paradigm of this library is that you replace segments of the page with the response, which it doesn't support for…
devmunchies on HN
Replacing document.body can break browser extensions and scripts
From 1 comment
Link handling needs to check keyboard modifier state, so that you don’t intercept things like Ctrl+click. You can also work with just one event handler rather than many. Here’s…
chrismorgan on HN
Injecting HTML via innerHTML raises XSS concerns
From 2 comments
Ah the good old element.innerHTML = xss_vector_here
dvh on HNLink handling needs to check keyboard modifier state, so that you don’t intercept things like Ctrl+click. You can also work with just one event handler rather than many. Here’s…
chrismorgan on HN
Requests
Document accessibility impact for screen readers
From 1 comment
Feature request: documentation describing the accessibility impact this will have. Any time I'm considering a library like this my number one question is always the impact it…
simonw on HN
Add polling for updates at intervals
From 1 comment
Have you thought about adding polling functionality, so that a given element can check with the server for updates at a set interval?
replwoacause on HN
Questions
How does it compare to HTMX and Unpoly
From 2 comments
How would you compare yourself to HTMX and Unpoly? I'm keenly interesting in this space for sure and love that you're working on another!
canadiantim on HNWhy is it much better?
replwoacause on HN
Should custom attributes use a data- prefix
From 2 comments
Someone who used jQuery.load a lot back in the day, it's nice to see this trend coming back. Only thing that stands out to me is using custom properties without data prefix, e.g.…
Ciantic on HNI believe doing this is already quite common and there's no real drawback. As far as I know the main advantage of the data- prefix is that there's a guarantee that no official…
solarkraft on HN
Alternatives named
HTMX
From 2 comments
I’m bought in to this approach after using Hotwire, but I’m concerned that all the competing implementations are going to undermine adoption. Maybe we should all just use htmx…
dyeje on HNHow would you compare yourself to HTMX and Unpoly? I'm keenly interesting in this space for sure and love that you're working on another!
canadiantim on HN
Unpoly
From 1 comment
How would you compare yourself to HTMX and Unpoly? I'm keenly interesting in this space for sure and love that you're working on another!
canadiantim on HN
pjax and Turbolinks
From 1 comment
I like it, but it feels funny to have this discussion without acknowledging this is really similar to pjax/turbolinks. Ok, now I'm feeling better; carry on!
wryun on HN
Hotwire
From 1 comment
I’m bought in to this approach after using Hotwire, but I’m concerned that all the competing implementations are going to undermine adoption. Maybe we should all just use htmx…
dyeje on HN