Right, it's also bothered me that the Vue docs spend so much time showing how it's a "progressive" framework. "Just use it for one component!" And show examples of how it can be lazy loaded in for your special complex spot that needs vue.
Like c'mon, if I'm using Vue, I'm using Vue. Same for React. Strap me into the native state management solution for your framework, your router, your preconfigured bundler. I'm not here to mess about or I'd have just stuck with vanilla.
Not having to deal with npm and a build step can remove a huge barrier to adoption for a large number of potential adopters, or people that just want some lightweight interactivity in an app.
That's what got me into Vue and I still use build less Vue all the time for tiny little sites that aren't worth setting up a whole CI process for. It's really lovely that it's an option.
Just like how easy jQuery was to get started with back in the day, but a whole framework
Yep, can confirm. I first used Vue in 2016 to write some simple calculators for my group's use in Eve Online. Without its "progressive" affordances, I don't think I would have gotten anything off the ground. I had no idea how to set up a build pipeline at that point, and I think Vue was new enough that there weren't many vue-specific tutorials so I'd have been learning from React tutorials and trying to figure out what to change with zero JS background.