Bonsai: Janestreet's UI Library

(github.com)

46 points | by KolmogorovComp 2 hours ago ago

11 comments

  • flufluflufluffy 24 minutes ago

    > And because Bonsai is written in OCaml, it becomes possible to use the same language and types on both the backend and frontend.

    Finally! I was waiting for this to become possible!

  • bobjansen 29 minutes ago

    This would of been cool back in 2014.

  • xvilka an hour ago

    Looks like it's Web-only, no mention of the native UI support (terminal UI excluded).

  • kubb 31 minutes ago

    I wish there were more OCaml shops out there

  • hahahaa an hour ago

    Oh it needs a userland trampoline!

    > JSOO does not have tail call optimization

  • Traster an hour ago

    The "Why Bonsai?" I found really funny.

    Let me re-write that section for you:

    Why Bonsai?

    At Jane Street we're super excited by Functional programming and by CAML in particular, so when we need low latency software, we use OCAML, when we need hardware, we write out own langauge - HardCAML, and when we need a Web UI, we build a Web UI framework in CAML. Because we fucking love CAML.

    • bofeiw 27 minutes ago

      Agreed, looks like it's reinventing the wheels. Frameworks does not really matter today, AI agents write the code anyway.

      • KolmogorovComp 25 minutes ago

        But AI do benefit a lot from a strict compiler, and having a simple language improve a lot on type-safety, so I don't think it is to throw, even today.

        • rmzs0711 14 minutes ago

          But what about compilation speed? Hot reload? Maintainability? What is the bus factor for these kind of technologies?

          Yea, its cool to have strict type safety, but what's the point of it doesn't have all the benefits from other Frameworks that took years to polish

      • ForHackernews 25 minutes ago

        Better frameworks will still help AIs avoid silly mistakes. A smarter framework means you can be productive with a dumber/cheaper AI.