Are you a developer interested in Node.js? Want to learn more about the technology, what the latest trends are, and find out some opinions on the best practices?
Or perhaps you’re just starting out in the world of Node.js and are looking for some great resources – past and present – to find out more.
Either way, you’ve come to the right place.
We’ve compiled a list of 11 Node.js podcasts that we think everyone should be listening to. Sometimes we’ve selected complete channels – such as the number one Node.js podcast NodeUp. Other times we’ve dug through the archives of other popular coding podcasts (usually with a JavaScript focus) and pulled out select Node.js episodes that go into the real nitty-gritty about a specific area of the technology.
Headphones at the ready? Let’s tune in…
11 Node.js Podcasts You Should Listen to
1. NodeUp
First on the list is NodeUp. Hosted by Bradley Farias from GoDaddy, it features regular discussions with key players in the Node.js community. Often placing its focus on Node.js in the enterprise, a lot of the talks are great for getting the real inside-scoops from professionals at the heart of the development industry. With persistently great reviews – often described by fans as “THE podcast for the Node community” – NodeUp is essential listening for those wanting to keep up with the latest Node.js trends. Over 100 episodes are available to choose from, with more than an hour’s worth of pure Node.js discussion on each.
2. Herding Code
Next up is Herding Code. Host John Galloway welcomes guests to discuss various elements of coding, with Node.js getting regular billing. Other subjects, such as security and identity get plenty of air time, but all episodes have transcripts which allow for easy searching, so you can quickly go through and see what golden nuggets of Node.js are available for you to get your teeth into. One of the episodes , for instance, delves into a conversation about Hackernoon blogger Keith Horwood’s post ‘Using “Server-less” Architecture to Massively Parallelize DNA Sequence Alignment via StdLib and Node.js’, in which Horwood explains what DNA sequence alignment is, and “how you can use massive parallelization to go from an n-squared problem to operate with a time complexity of one.”
3. Code Winds
Code Windseatures Node.js podcasts alongside others covering JavaScript, React.js and HTML 5. A couple of great episodes from the archives to draw your attention to, both of which focussing on the Hapi framework. The first is a conversation with Saul Maddox from PROS, as he talks about his Hapi-Ninja boilerplate which helps developers get up and running with the Hapi Node.js web framework. The second features Eran Hammer, a Walmart Labs engineer and lead developer for Hapi. Listeners will come away with some understanding of Hapi and its usefulness for building robust web applications.
4. 5 Minutes of JavaScript (FiveJS)
5 Minutes of JavaScript ((or FiveJs for short) delivers all the latest news from the JavaScript community – in just 5 minutes. Recent Node.js podcasts to alert your attention to include Episode #127 from November 2016, which features “19 things about Node.js”, and Episode #125 from October, where listeners will learn the secret to visually debugging Node.js applications. Very cool.
5. NodeUniversity Podcast
A little different in format than all the previous examples, it is structured in a course-like fashion and explains in detail how Node.js works under the hood. This can serve as a great introduction for developers / technical employees still hesitant about Node.js as it explains how it works under the hood and gives proper examples from both the technical and business perspectives.
6. The Crater Podcast
Don’t be fooled by the name, The Crater Podcast features plenty of content about Node.js as well. Each week, a new podcast is made available for download featuring all the latest JavaScript news. Our Node.js podcast recommendation from the archives features host Josh Owens with Ry Walker in discussion about tracking down performance bottlenecks in Node.js with Meteor. Find it here – Episode 29.
7. Spacedojo Show
The Spacedojo Show is another great JavaScript podcast, hosted again by Josh Owens, this time with Ben Strahan. The pair welcome coding community guests to help listeners learn about JavaScript platforms and building great apps. From the archives is a brilliant hour-length podcast for learning Node.js – ‘Feathers.js – Building Realtime Web Apps Easily with Node.js’. A great one for those just starting out – not to be missed.
8. Nodecasts
Nodecasts is perhaps more about screencasts than podcasts per se, but it’s certainly earning its place on this list due to its brilliant, FREE, “Introduction to Node.js” course. Jon Kuperman, a seasoned JavaScript developer, devotes the whole site to high quality Node.js tutorials, and his introductory course is perfect for those at the very start of their Node.js journey. Featuring 11 short screencasts, the tutorial takes users through everything from installing Node.js to getting started with your first Node.js app, and from using Node.js on your file system to debugging Node.js applications. A great site for beginners wanting to learn the basics of Node.js.
9. JavaScript Jabber
One of the most comprehensive JavaScript podcasts in existence, JavaScript Jabber covers everything from developer interviews to career advice. Digging through the archives we find a gem of a Node.js podcast – ‘Node.js on Azure with Glenn Block’. A member of the Microsoft Azure SDK team, Glenn Block talks about server side JavaScript – i.e. Node.js – how it works with Azure, and the tools he and his team create to help developers deploy Node apps to Azure. A real interesting 56 minutes.
10. JS Party
Self-billed as a community celebration of JavaScript on the web, JS Party is a brand new podcast recording live every Friday at 3pm US Eastern time, with shows made available for download shortly afterwards. On April 14 2017, Node.js got its first feature in the episode entitled ‘VM Neutrality in Node.js (N-API), Learning JavaScript, and Mastodon’. Mikeal Rogers, Alex Sexton, and Rachel White discuss VM Neutrality in Node.js (N-API) in the new Node.js 8 release. This is hot discussion right off the press – not to be missed by anyone interested in the very latest Node.js news.
11. Spotlight
Last, but by absolutely no means least, is Spotlight. Featuring a brand new series of podcasts, The Future of Node.js, all recorded at Node Interactive 2016, this is perhaps the ultimate Node.js podcast channel to subscribe to if you want to hear all the latest from the Node community. Check out “Node.js Backstory and Future”, where Mikeal Rogers talks about the history of Node, the io.js fork, and how The Node.js Foundation is helping to solidify the whole Node ecosystem. Amazing stuff.
Have We Missed Any?
Those are our 11 great Node.js podcasts we think everyone interested in the technology should listen to – but have we missed any good ones? Let us know in the comments below.
