Both Mozilla and Webkit have recently announced drastic performance improvements to their Javascript engines. Both Webkit’s SquirrelFish and Mozilla’s SpiderMonkey are sure to shake up the Javascript world for the better. This is all the more exciting given the new activity in the ECMA standardization process that might bring new life to the language.
As important as those things are, there’s a bigger question here. Which project’s multi-animal portmanteau of a name looks cooler when rendered artistically? The SpiderMonkey has a definite cute factor, and seems much more likely to leap into action, just in time. The SquirrelFish, however is more original, and has a modest demeanour that shows his dedication to executing Javascript rapidly.
Which creature would you trust with your code?