[Feature Request] use JSON instead of YAML

[yan-foto]

JSON is native to many programming languages (i.e. is provided by the standard library) as well as to browsers. Moving to YAML would also remove one dependency from this project :)

[andrew]

I'm open to switching at this early stage

[Morl99]

Although YAML is a little better for diffs and reduces unnecessary merge conflicts. And for most people YAML is easier to author and read.

For the reference: pnpm uses yaml for the lockfile, npm uses json.

[yan-foto]

And for most people YAML is easier to author and read.

I'm not sure if that's true. YAML allows different syntax for the same structures (e.g., flow and block style for collections). And It prohibits using tabs for indentations, which you could argue that is not very accessible.

JSON uses a syntax that is familiar to anyone who knows a c-style programming syntax.

[andrew]

Also for context, we're using json for the lockfile because cyclonedx 1.6 spec doesn't support yaml as a format (unlike spdx)

[Morl99]

And for most people YAML is easier to author and read.

I'm not sure if that's true. YAML allows different syntax for the same structures (e.g., flow and block style for collections). And It prohibits using tabs for indentations, which you could argue that is not very accessible.

JSON uses a syntax that is familiar to anyone who knows a c-style programming syntax.

You have a point, it probably varies greatly depending on the previous knowledge of the people. Most people I have had contact with were able to write and read YAML but struggled with JSON, but I am thinking about non technical people not familiar with programming. I would think that people familiar with programming can easily learn to read and write YAML just as good as JSON.

One big plus of YAML: it supports comments which I find super useful in package files. (why this dependency, why this version, ...). Sure there is JSON5 and JSONC but they are not natively supported so that benefit vanishes if we want comments.

What is the target audience of this tool?