A full version history of the jest package with size, number of distributed files and dependency evolution.
The jest npm package has undergone significant evolution since its initial release. Early versions, starting from 0.0.6 in 2012, focused on providing a RESTful API layer with Mongoose, reflecting an inspiration from Python's Tastypie. These versions, authored by Ishai Jaffe, relied on dependencies like express, api-easy, and mongoose.
A shift occurred around version 12.1.0 in 2016, marking a transition to "Painless JavaScript Unit Testing," with a core dependency on jest-cli. Facebook took over the development and the description changed from RESTful API to Javascript testing. Subsequent releases through the 13.x, 14.x, 15.x, 16.x, 17.x, 18.x, and 19.x series brought continuous refinements and dependency updates to jest-cli.
The 20.0.0 released switched to "Delightful JavaScript Testing", with various improvements and fixes represented in versions like 20.0.1 through 20.0.4. The 21.x series continued with delightful testing, updating jest-cli. Later iterations like 22.x, 23.x, 24.x, and 25.x continued refining the testing experience, gradually incorporating import-local and @jest/core as dependencies. The package license changed from BSD-3-Clause to MIT when it hit version 21.2.0, with a repository taking from Ishai Jaffe's GitHub account to Facebook's GitHub account. The newer versions such as 26.x, 27.x introduce new dependencies @jest/core and node-notifier, and 28.x started to specify the package directory within the repository as "packages/jest". The trend continues in later versions into the 29.x and 30.x, showcasing ongoing commitment to feature enhancements, dependency updates, and refined developer experience.