688: Ex-npm Employee Making a New Package Manager?! Vlt with Darcy Clarke
Nov 3, 2023
auto_awesome
Join Darcy Clarke, a former npm employee and creator of the vlt package manager, as he shares his fascinating career journey in web development. He dives into the challenges of package management, detailing why we need a new player like vlt. They discuss the complexities of the npm ecosystem, explore on-premises registries, and tackle security vulnerabilities. Plus, hear about Darcy's delightful adventures with his goldendoodle and the nostalgic highs of favorite bands and coffee machines, making for an entertaining blend of tech and personal stories.
Different strategies in package management: creating an ESM variant of legacy node modules for seamless installation, using requires and imports alongside each other can be complex and risky, and the trade-off between speed and features in package managers.
Config files in project setups: the presence of multiple config files indicates valuable projects, their location is not a significant problem, but standardizing them can be challenging. Also, music recommendations were discussed with a focus on emo, punk, and post-hardcore genres.
Considerations for performance in package managers: heavily configurable package managers like npm can be slower due to dependency graph interpretation and copying packages, while using the symlink approach allows for fast installation but lacks support for Windows and can disrupt ecosystems.
Deep dives
Charlie the Dog
I recently got a dog named Charlie, a flat-haired golden doodle. He has brought so much joy to my life.
Scientific American Magazine
I enjoy reading Scientific American magazine, especially when I'm traveling.
Nespresso Machine
I've been loving my Nespresso machine, which makes great coffee with the press of a button.
Package Management Strategies and Performance
One of the main ideas discussed in this podcast episode is the different strategies employed in package management. The speaker mentions the approach of creating an ESM variant of legacy node modules, which allows for seamless installation. This approach focuses on including a specific variant of software with the required imports or exports, ensuring consistent package consumption. Another strategy mentioned is the use of requires and imports alongside each other, which the speaker considers potentially dangerous due to the complexity and "magic" involved. The importance of considering performance in package managers is also discussed, with the speaker highlighting the trade-off between speed and features. The speaker mentions how heavily configurable package managers like npm can be slower due to their ability to interpret dependency graphs and lay them on disk, which involves copying packages. In contrast, using a symlink approach allows for faster installations but does not support Windows and can disrupt ecosystems that rely on packages being located in specific parents.
Config Files and Music Recommendations
The second main idea covered in this podcast episode is the discussion around config files and music recommendations. The speaker shares their thoughts on the abundance of config files in project setups, stating that the presence of multiple config files indicates the utilization of various valuable projects. They express the belief that the location of config files is not a significant problem and that hiding them or using tools like Git plugins can help manage their visibility. The challenge of standardizing config files is also mentioned, with the speaker noting the diverse requirements, such as static analysis, extensibility, and easy imports, that different projects may have. The conversation then shifts to music recommendations, with the hosts and guest providing a list of favorite bands and recent music releases. Bands like Bring Me The Horizon, Monine, Blank, and Protest the Hero are mentioned as notable acts in the emo, punk, and post-hardcore genres. The importance of music in evoking nostalgia and creating connections is highlighted, and the guest expresses excitement for upcoming concerts by Monine and Protest the Hero.
In this supper club episode of Syntax, Wes and Scott talk with Darcy Clarke about his career path in tech, working with Wes back in the day, why he decided to build vlt volt, and the biggest sick pick list yet!
