JavaScript has been called the "assembly language of the web," because it's as ubiquitous and unavoidable as x86 assembly. It's the only language that runs on all browsers. It's also flawed, yet referring to it as a low-level language is missing the mark.

Instead, think of JavaScript as the raw coffee beans of the web. Sure, some of the beans are damaged and a few are rotten. But if the good ones are selected, roasted, and brewed by a skilled barista, the beans can be transformed into a brilliant jamocha that cannot be had just once and forgotten. It's consumption becomes a daily custom, life without it would be static, harder to perform, and much less exciting. Some even prefer to enhance the brew with plug-ins and add-ons such as cream, sugar, and cocoa, which complement it very well.

One of JavaScript's biggest critics, Douglas Crawford, was quoted as saying "There are certainly a lot of people who refuse to consider the possibility that JavaScript got anything right. I used to...