What is ReactJS Software Development and What We Need to Know About it?

Perhaps one of the best things about modern web development is that there are so many accessible resources online. However, all this makes it harder for non-tech people to sort out essential info and make the right choice for next their software project. React is an open-source JavaScript library for building user interfaces (UIs), especially for Single-Page Applications (SPAs). It was originally designed by software developer Jordan Walke and the technology was developed in-house before rolling out to Facebook (2011) and then Instagram (2012). Today, there are many notable examples of successful business applications based on React and React Native, such as Netflix, WhatsApp and Discord.

Working in a bespoke software development company with a focus on ReactJS for over a year has shown me the real potential of this library and all the advantages it can bring to businesses. But the whole development process with React is also extraordinary in a way. That is because React is designed in such a way that it can very easily integrate with existing code or other libraries. Its primary objective is to simplify the process of developing and building fast, scalable and simple web applications. With that in mind, let’s explore the key things you need to know about ReactJS. 

ReactJS Software Development in a Nutshell:

Each web application consists of a front-end and a back-end or client-side and server-side. The backend of each web application consists of a server and a database. What server’s job is to communicate with the database and to host your web application. Then, the backend sends data to the frontend, and if the app is written in JavaScript, a top-ranking programming language, it converts this data into HTML. And here comes ReactJS library that is essentially a basic framework for the output of user interface (UI) components of websites.

It is natural to want your web application to perform across various browsers, rank high in search engines and be responsive. To achieve these key objectives, you need to focus the use cases of your app on the end-users and their experience. This is exactly where React can reveal its full potential as it is fully equipped to bring your front-end to a whole new level:  Creating a seamless and beautiful user experience (UX) thanks to the VDOM (Virtual DOM) enabling the declarative API of React, increasing the app’s speed and performance. 

Advantages & Disadvantages of ReactJS

• Reusable Components

This is one of the most distinguished and cherished React features – its reusable components! An application made from React uses several components. These components each have their own logic and rendering, which can be reused when needed. This reuse allows faster development and maintenance of the application, speeding up time-to-market and easier tech support. 

• Easy to Learn and Use

While no technology is super easy to learn, there are plenty of tutorials and training resources for those who want to master React in 2021. It’s also easier to learn for those who already have JavaScript experience. 

• Dynamic Web Applications Made Easy

Previously, it was difficult to build high-performance web apps using HTML due to the complexity of the code but React solved this problem because it requires less coding, which allows for more app functionality and faster deployment. 

• Optimised Performance

As mentioned earlier, the VDOM is one of the core features of React. The virtual DOM process ensures minimum update time of the real DOM, resulting in higher performance and better UX.

• A Major Community

Since React was made open-source in 2013, software developers around the world have been able to use and improve it continuously since then. Plus, React community is very active and often releases new useful libraries for the React developers to utilise.

However, as with each technology React, also has its own disadvantages:

• Rapid Development

This is not a disadvantage per se but could, in some cases, be considered as such. React’s environment is constantly changing, making it difficult for developers to stay in touch with the constant updates. For instance, as I’m writing this article, there is a new Tweet that ReactJS has recently released React Docs Beta. However, most modern web frameworks share this characteristic, so while this is not in itself a downside, it is an issue React developers face.

• JSX

React uses JavaScript XML (JSX). JSX is an extension that allows you to write HTML in React and some developers aren’t particularly fond of JSX documentation.

What about React Native Framework?

During the pandemic, many consumer and market demands experienced a drastic shift and in this turn of events, one thing is for sure. Businesses that want to stay relevant and competitive need to adopt digitalisation as soon as possible and embrace mobile solutions. According to the latest Statista reports, the global mobile app downloads exceed 218 billion. More and more customers prefer to use a mobile app for entertainment, shopping and even tracking their health. As the number of smartphone users rises, so does the demand for useful applications to make daily life much easier and more convenient.

One thing that eases ReactJS software development process is to build apps that are suitable for both the Android and iOS markets, so React Native comes to the rescue! Its key aspect that sets it apart from truly native applications is that developers don’t have to create brand new UIs for each platform. Apart from the cost and time savings, the development effort is also reduced in half. According to the latest calculations, almost 90% of the codes already used can be reused between IOS or Android!