Why doesn't Node.js have a native DOM?

Question

When I discovered that Node.js was built using the V8 JavaScript engine, I thought:

Great, web scraping will be easier as the page

Answer 1

The Document Object Model (DOM in short) is a programming interface for HTML and XML documents and it represents the page so that programs can change the document structure, style, and content. More on this subject.

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The necessary distinction between client-side (browser) and server-side (Node.js) and their main goals:

• Client-side: accessing and displaying information of the web
• Server-side: providing stable and reliable ways to deliver web information

Why is there no DOM in Node.js be default?

By default, Node.js doesn't have access, nor have any knowledge about the actual DOM in your own browser. Node.js just delivers the data, that will be used by your own browser to process and render the whole website, the DOM included. The server provides the data to your browser to use and process. That is the intended way.

Why wouldn't you want to access the DOM in Node.js?

Accessing your browser's actual DOM using Node.js would be just simply out of the goal of the server. Your own browser's role is to display the data coming from the server. However it is certainly possible and there are multiple solutions in different level of depths and varieties to pre-render, manipulate or change the DOM using AJAX calls. We'll see what future trends will bring.

Why would you want to access the DOM in Node.js?

By default, you shouldn't access your own, actual DOM (at least some data of it) using Node.js. Client-side and server-side are separated in terms of role, functionality, and responsibility based on years of experience and knowledge. Although there are several situations, where there are solid reasons to do so:

• Gathering usage data (A/B testing, UI/UX efficiency and feedback)
• Headless testing (Development, automation, web-scraping)

How can you access the DOM in Node.js?

• jsdom: pure-JavaScript implementation, good for testing your own DOM/browser-related project
• cheerio: great solution if you like/often use jQuery
• puppeteer: Google's own way to provide headless testing using Google Chrome
• own solution (your possible future project link here)

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Although these solutions do not provide a way to access your browser's own, actual DOM by default, but you can create a project to send some form of data about your DOM to the server, then use/render/manipulate that data based on your needs.

...and yes, web-scraping and web development in terms of tools and utilities became more sophisticated and certainly easier in several fields.