Running Node.js and Writing Basic Scripts

Node.js is a runtime environment, which means it doesn’t come with a graphical user interface like some other development tools. We interact with Node.js through a command-line interface (CLI). In this lesson, we’ll learn to run Node.js, use its interactive environment (REPL), and create a basic script. Once we’re comfortable with this, we’ll have taken our first steps into server-side JavaScript.

Running Node.js in interactive mode (REPL)

The Node.js REPL lets us interact with JavaScript directly. REPL stands for Read-Eval-Print Loop:

• Read: It reads the input.

• Eval: It evaluates the input as JavaScript code. ...