As a front-end web developer most of the development I do is done in HTML, CSS and JavaScript. As the JavaScript widgets and applications that I build become increasingly more complex, the need for solid JavaScript framework becomes all that much more important. You certainly don’t need a JavaScript framework or library to build a rock solid application, however using one will make it much faster, painless, and enjoyable. For years I’ve been using the MooTools framework and before that the MooFX libraries to help build rich interactive JavaScript applications and interface widgets. I’ve used jQuery on occasion when I had to due to client requirements, but it’s always left me wanting more. While jQuery makes it dead easy to find and manipulate DOM elements and do some nice easy animations, it doesn’t do much beyond that. I’ve never really been able to articulate exactly why I prefer MooTools over jQuery, however Aaron Newton has done an excellent job with a very detailed and fair comparison of jQuery and Mootools at: jqueryvsmootools.com.

I personally hope the MooTools community grows to a size comparable to jQuery’s. We need a helpful, friendly, and loyal community to spread the word about MooTools and help other developers, at any skill level, understand not only MooTools better, but JavaScript itself.