Our newest full-time addition to the development team, Lucio Rubens, has been working tirelessly to bring support for another native API in the form of TSARK — TypeScript ARK API — which will pave the way for our upcoming mobile wallets.

Check out TSARK on GitHub : https://github.com/ArkEcosystem/ark-ts

The addition of TSARK brings yet another way of interacting with the ARK blockchain, joining several other programming languages already implemented, including Java, GoLang, Python, and .NET.

TypeScript integration for ARK will advance our progress on mobile wallets and help community developers who are currently working with or planning to work with ARK.

What is TypeScript

TypeScript is a free and open-source programming language developed by Microsoft. It is a superset of JavaScript which mainly offers optional static typing, classes, and interfaces. One of the biggest features of TypeScript is to enable IDEs (Integrated Development Environments) that assist in spotting provide common errors during coding.

Here is an example of ARK with TypeScript — With TS, you can easily find what you need on the fly rather than having to refer to the documentation and previously defined code snippets. In essence, TSARK functions like an auto-complete for developers, allowing you to speed up your development cycle.

TypeScript compiles to clean, simple, JavaScript code which runs on any browser, in Node.js, or in any JavaScript engine that supports ECMAScript 3 (or newer). It enables JavaScript developers to use highly-productive development tools and practices, like static checking and code refactoring, when developing JavaScript applications.

The TypeScript motto is “Any browser. Any host. Any OS. Open source.”, which accurately describes what it is — an open programming language that works on all platforms and operating systems. It spots many errors that can be overlooked, and can even show you what a function returns if you’re unsure. With intelligent renaming you can rename every reference with the push of a button. This is just a few of the great things JS developers will like about TypeScript.

For more in-depth overview, watch Microsoft’s TypeScript introduction video here https://channel9.msdn.com/posts/Anders-Hejlsberg-Introducing-TypeScript

If you have any questions regarding TSARK you can join ARK Slack and contact our developer Lucio directly on Slack, or join #development channel to brainstorm and talk with our fellow ARK developers.