Grain is a strongly-typed functional programming language built for the modern web by leveraging the brilliant work done by the WebAssembly project. Unlike other languages used on the web today (like TypeScript or Elm), that compile into JavaScript, Grain doesn’t compile into JavaScript but compiles all the way down to WebAssembly, supported by a tiny JavaScript runtime to give it access to web features that WebAssembly doesn’t support yet.
It was designed with the purpose to specifically serve web developers. Following are the language features:
No runtime type errors
Grain does not need any kind of type annotations. All the pieces of Grain code that developers write is thoroughly sifted for type errors. Developers do not have to deal with runtime exceptions and thus achieving full type safety with none of the fuss.
Being functional, but flexible
Grain is geared towards functional programming, but understands the web isn’t as pure as we would like it to be. It enables one to easily write what’s appropriate for the scenario.
Embracing new web standards
Grain is built on top of WebAssembly, a brand-new technology that represents a paradigm shift in web development. WebAssembly is nothing but a bytecode format which is executed in a web browser. This allows an application to be deployed to a device with a compliant web browser having to go through any explicit installation steps.
Read Next:
TypeScript 3.0 is finally released with ‘improved errors’, editor productivity and more
