ars technica: “Because Facebook’s entire code base is compiled down to a single binary executable, the company’s deployment process is quite different from what you’d normally expect in a PHP environment. Rossi told me that the binary, which represents the entire Facebook application, is approximately 1.5GB in size. When Facebook updates its code and generates a new build, the new binary has to be pushed to all of the company’s servers.”
As much as I rail against Facebook, they don’t mess around when it comes to their technology. If they can’t find what they’re after, they build it.
Most web sites are built from a little of this and a little of that. Now doubt Facebook has many components that make it up.
The idea that they’ve gone against conventional wisdom and built a monolithic application is kind of refreshing. They own the world because they’ve continued to make their own path.
The Hacker Way, indeed.
