Node: additional build size flavours

[devsnek]

spinning off of #19214, i wanted to brainstorm here about possibly providing build size goals for each release, more installer options, etc

feel free to edit this list

some sizes:

• Normal
  
  
  
  • full icu
  
  
  • local HTML documentation
  
  

• Small

  • small icu
  • no debug symbols
  • maybe minify js source, unsure of how much space that would save if any and would be killing useful stack traces

• Large

  • full icu
  • local HTML documentation
  • debug symbols
  • additional compression algos, websockets?
  • whatever is highly standardised but not specific enough to go in normal node builds

other ideas

• using installer to include more stuff
  
  
  
  • local documentation
  
  
  • additional "core" modules (additional compression algos, websockets) (loadable via dlopen/require from some location?)
  
  
  • vetted and maintained by node team, intended to work in core like any other builtin, kept in main repo, same testing, etc etc
  
  

[Trott]

Nit: Maybe instead of Normal, use the term Standard? (Or maybe Recommended?)

[bnoordhuis]

I'll be today's Devil's advocate!

Paradox of choice: the more available options, the more anxious people get. Let's not inflict that on our users, most already have a hard enough time wading through the npm morass.

[gibfahn]

Paradox of choice: the more available options, the more anxious people get. Let's not inflict that on our users, most already have a hard enough time wading through the npm morass.

I agree, but I think having sensible defaults is a good mitigation for that. As long as the one you get presented with when you go to nodejs.org (or run nvm install) is the one we think most people will want, then only those who care enough to look will have the choice.

Doing twice as many builds is of course a lot of overhead for @nodejs/build and @nodejs/release

[joyeecheung]

How many people that need a non-normal build actually use the official installers? My guess is we could just provide such builds to download, and whoever wants those can grab it by themselves and install it on their own, they can send feature requests to nvm of course.

[devsnek]

seems stalled and like what we have currently is good enough... can be reopened if needed