Rust Tutorial: An Introduction to Rust for JavaScript Devs

Rust, a systems programming language born from Mozilla Research in 2010, has become a favorite among tech giants. Amazon and Microsoft champion it as a superior alternative to C/C for their infrastructure, while companies like Figma and Discord utilize its power in client applications. This tutorial explores Rust's capabilities, its integration with web browsers, and scenarios where it shines. We'll compare it to JavaScript, guide you through browser setup, and analyze the performance of a Rust-powered web application.

Key Highlights:

• Major corporations like Amazon and Microsoft endorse Rust as a robust, high-performance alternative to C/C .
• While differing in core nature (Rust is compiled, JavaScript interpreted), both languages boast modern package management (Cargo for Rust, npm for JavaScript) and features like async/await. Rust's strict type system ensures greater compile-time safety.
• This tutorial provides a practical walkthrough of setting up Rust for web development using Cargo, rustc, and wasm-pack, integrating seamlessly with npm and webpack.
• WebAssembly (Wasm) enables Rust's high performance within browsers, making it ideal for CPU-intensive web applications.
• A detailed comparison of Rust and JavaScript in a web development context is presented, using a Corona Infection Simulator to illustrate Rust's performance benefits, particularly on mobile devices.
• Essential resources for learning Rust include the official wasm-bindgen guide, "The Rust Programming Language" book, and "Rust by Example," invaluable for JavaScript developers.

Rust: A Closer Look

While conceptually distinct from JavaScript, Rust shares surprising similarities.

Similarities:

Both languages feature modern package management: npm for JavaScript and Cargo for Rust (using Cargo.toml instead of package.json). Project creation (cargo init) and execution (cargo run) follow a familiar pattern. Furthermore, many advanced features are mirrored, albeit with slightly different syntax. For example, array iteration using closures:

JavaScript:

<code class="language-javascript">let staff = [
   {name: "George", money: 0},
   {name: "Lea", money: 500000},
];
let salary = 1000;
staff.forEach( (employee) => { employee.money += salary; } );</code>

Rust:

<code class="language-rust">let salary = 1000;
staff.iter_mut().for_each( 
    |employee| { employee.money += salary; }
);</code>

Object destructuring also finds its parallel:

JavaScript:

<code class="language-javascript">let point = { x: 5, y: 10 };
let {x,y} = point;</code>

Rust:

<code class="language-rust">let point = Point { x: 5, y: 10 };
let Point { x, y } = point;</code>

(Note the explicit type Point in Rust). Other shared features include async/await, simple array creation (let array = [1,2,3];), modular code organization, and Unicode string literal support.

Differences:

Rust's compiled nature (using rustc) contrasts with JavaScript's interpreted execution, generally resulting in superior performance. Cargo handles compilation, while webpack integrates this process with npm's run build command.

Rust's strong typing enforces type matching at compile time, preventing runtime errors—similar to TypeScript. This strictness, while initially challenging, contributes to cleaner, more reliable code.

Rust's pattern matching (match) offers a more elegant alternative to lengthy if-else if chains:

JavaScript (if-else if):

<code class="language-javascript">let staff = [
   {name: "George", money: 0},
   {name: "Lea", money: 500000},
];
let salary = 1000;
staff.forEach( (employee) => { employee.money += salary; } );</code>

Rust (match):

<code class="language-rust">let salary = 1000;
staff.iter_mut().for_each( 
    |employee| { employee.money += salary; }
);</code>

However, Rust's strict type system can initially feel cumbersome. This rigorous approach, while demanding, enhances code reliability.

Getting Started with Rust

Let's build a "Hello, world!" application in Rust for the browser.

Tools:

1. Install Cargo and rustc using rustup. Verify installation with cargo --version and rustup --version.
2. Install wasm-pack (verify with wasm-pack --version).
3. Ensure Node and npm are installed.

Rust Code (lib.rs):

<code class="language-javascript">let point = { x: 5, y: 10 };
let {x,y} = point;</code>

Cargo.toml:

Add the following to the [dependencies] section:

<code class="language-rust">let point = Point { x: 5, y: 10 };
let Point { x, y } = point;</code>

And add this to the [lib] section:

<code class="language-javascript">if ( x == 1) { 
    // ... 
} else if ( x == 2 ) {
    // ...
}
else if ( x == 3 || x == 4 ) {
    // ...
} // ...</code>

Compile with wasm-pack build.

JavaScript Integration (index.js):

<code class="language-rust">match x {
    1 => { /* Do something if x == 1 */},
    2 => { /* Do something if x == 2 */},
    3 | 4 => { /* Do something if x == 3 || x == 4 */},
    5...10 => { /* Do something if x >= 5 && x <= 10 */},
    _ => { /* Catch all other cases */ }
}</code>

Set up webpack (using wasm-pack-plugin) as described in the original article. Running npm run serve should compile and launch a development server. Open your browser's developer console to see "Hello, world!".

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