Comment by fleddr
5 years ago
No, it's not misleading. The Office 365 desktop apps are written in React. As is Teams. As is Visual Studio Code.
Specifically, React Native for Windows. https://github.com/Microsoft/react-native-windows
For things like background services, they still use C/C++.
> No, it's not misleading. The Office 365 desktop apps are written in React. As is Teams. As is Visual Studio Code.
Is there a source for this? I searched around and can only find rumors from 2018, and announcements that the mobile apps are using react.
You're right that the main source is a 2018 original tweet, and then some articles building on that tweet, and then news dries up.
This is the best I can find, with the Microsoft MVP clarifying the situation:
https://mspoweruser.com/no-microsoft-is-not-rewriting-office...
Specific point of interest:
"Office 365’s UI, a lot of it, but definitely not all of it, are pieces that are built using React Native (Windows). API’s and Services are still going to be powered by C++, C#, or whatever is the most appropriate for that team. Nothing is converting to “all/completely” JavaScript/TypeScript."
To me, this confirms that at least the UI is React. Anecdotally, it feels very "web" as I use it daily. Sluggish, missing paint cycles when switching between apps, and the typical main thread freezes.
I'll let you decide if this is convincing enough evidence :)