WebAssembly (abbreviated as Wasm) is a new standard for an open executable code format that allows high-performance applications to be run on the web platform using low-level programming languages such as C, C++, and Rust. Wasm is designed as an intermediate representation between source code and machine code, which speeds up the loading and execution of web applications.
One of the main problems with modern web applications is low performance, especially when working with large amounts of data or complex computations. JavaScript, which is the main programming language for web applications, has its performance limitations due to its dynamic nature and interpreted execution. In this sense, WebAssembly opens up new possibilities for improving the performance of web applications.
An advantage of WebAssembly is that it can be executed on various platforms, including on the server and in the browser. This means that developers can use existing code in low-level programming languages and run it in a web environment without the need to rewrite the application from scratch. Thanks to this, WebAssembly facilitates the porting of existing applications to the web platform and allows them to work with high performance.
WebAssembly has a compact binary format, which reduces the size of the loaded code and speeds up its loading. This is especially important when working with mobile devices and low-bandwidth networks. Additionally, since WebAssembly is executed directly by the browser, it provides better security as the code runs in a sandbox, isolated from the underlying system.
Web applications that use WebAssembly can achieve significant performance improvements. This is particularly useful for applications such as games, graphic editors, calculations of large amounts of data, and other computationally intensive tasks. With WebAssembly, developers can leverage the strengths of low-level programming languages to create more efficient and powerful web applications.
Despite all the advantages, WebAssembly does not provide a complete replacement for JavaScript. It is a complement to the stack of web technologies and works most effectively in combination with JavaScript. JavaScript continues to be the primary programming language for web applications, as it has wide support and ease of use. Together with WebAssembly, JavaScript can greatly improve the performance and capabilities of web applications.