Toolset

• often used as dev environment,
• based on V8 - google chrome JS engine,
• add APIs that are locked in browser - IO/tty/...
• event based, non blocking, 
• single loop, async processing

• deals with module loading,
• versions,
• dependencies,
• updates

Grunt

• plugin rich, 
• simple config, 
• currently problems with maintainers,

Gulp

• stream based,
• code over configuration, 
• simple API

Task runner

Tests

• frameworks
  • BDD/TDD
    • Jasmine, Mocha, Chai, ...
• runners
  • karma
• e2e
  • protractor, nightwatchjs

Scaffolding

• yeomain,
• slush

Stack

Servers

• express - fast, simple,
• hapi - HA, middleware,
• koa - alternative

Storage

• MongoDB,
• CouchDB, 
• PouchDB, 
• Redis

Frameworks

It seems to be ...

version 1.x

• easy to begin,
• a lot of online resources,
• based on complex concept,
• has performance limitations,

version 2.x

• bad press, 
• large scope of changes,
• high performance gain,
• a lot of new features

• Google support,
• commonly recognized,

• small and simple
• focus on Model
• plain JavaScript

• good in conventions over configuration,
• well documented,
• early adopter,
• great for Rails, Diango devs

• focuses on View rendering,
• declarative templates - JSX,
• not MV* based
• not a framework - it's just lib,
• often used as a part of solution

• cutting egde,
• does not have Angular program limitations,
• not known commonly,
• recently in beta

ES 2015

Declarations

• block scope - let,
• real constants support - const

Functions

• default values,
• named and rest parameters, 
• arrow function

Objects and Classes

• inheritance and syntax sugar,
• Object.assign

Data structs

• Array,
• Map,
• Set

Others

• modules,
• spread, 
• tail-call optimizations,
• iterators,
• promises,
• generators.

Modularization

Immediately-invoked function expression(IIFE)

• simple solution, 
• does not depend on external loader,
• but not real module system 

CommonJS

• compact syntax,
• sync loading - not suitable for webapp,
• used in node.js loader

Asynchronous Module Definition (AMD)

• different syntax,
• based on function wrapping, 
• better suited to the dynamic webapps

ES 2015 modules

• more compact than CommonJS,
• static checks on structure, 
• cycle dependencies support,
• declarative syntax, 
• API for loader