I wrote a JavaScript framework in 2013. Here's what that world looked like

On September 26, 2013, the author made the first commit of Matreshka.js, a small framework for two-way data binding. At the time, front-end work was a novel experience. Every new open source project felt like a special event, as Backbone.js reached 1.0 in March, AngularJS captured attention with its magic two-way binding, and Ember followed with its own 1.0 release in August.

Knockout offered observables, while Facebook introduced React at JSConf US in May, causing jokes about HTML inside JavaScript. The process of learning new libraries and understanding how they worked involved reading their source code, and a good idea could quickly reshape how everyone wrote code. In 2013, knowledge of all browsers was essential, as Internet Explorer 8 was still ubiquitous, and jQuery needed to support older versions to accommodate various environments.

The quirks of different browsers, such as lack of support for certain methods and properties, meant developers had to learn workarounds to ensure compatibility. The author found Matreshka.js fascinating, even after revisiting its code, as it represented a time when front-end development was still finding its footing and innovation was a daily occurrence.