The first decision made… Direction
Now the second decision… What Framework to use for the new web app?
You might think this will be easy with so much experience but it’s not. Why? Because technology and frameworks are continually changing and most important what will give the user experience we aim towards.
Years ago everything was aimed towards functionality only and looks and usability was lowest down on the list of priorities but luckily things have changed. So many of us now spend hours in front of computers for our jobs and it has to be a good experience. Web apps should make life easier not more stressful trying to work out how something works. Speed has also become key to a better user experience.
Single Page Application (SPA)
So what is a single page application (SPA)? A website that dynamically rewrites the page rather than loading the entire page every time. This makes it faster and more responsive as it only loads required content
There are many frameworks that can be used to create a single page application which all have their positives and negatives. My biggest negative is Javascript in general as to me it’s like writing a letter with many bits of different languages. Think about writing a letter starting in English, moving onto German, a little bit of French and why not add a splash of Chinese.
The main aims of the new web app were to be a “progressive web app (PWA)” creating a app-like experience on a desktop or laptop and when using a mobile the same experience directly via the web. Using directly from the web means there is no need for a separate app downloaded to your mobile phone.
Web App Framework Options
Narrowed it down to three potential Frameworks for the new web app.
Angular – great framework for building interactive elements and components. allows to bind data and inject eliminate most part of the code in order to prevent writing it
Facts: Google – Released 2 years stable, two-way binding
React – used for building user interfaces specifically for single-page applications, fast, scalable, and simple
Facts: Facebook – Released 6 years very stable, one-way binding
Vue – Stable progressive framework. Easy to learn and understand. Simple and flexible.
Facts: Released 5 years ago, two-way binding, view-oriented product.
Are All Frameworks Just Javascript Based?
All these Frameworks are Javascript based which isn’t my favourite but seems like the only answer or is it?
Because of my lack of love for Javascript, I did a quick google search “Single page application (SPA) non javascript” not expecting many answers but came across an article from Microsoft “Choose between traditional web apps and single page apps” halfway down the page I read “Razor Components (code named Blazor), Get started with Blazor.” WOW just what I have been looking for but also a few problems.
So is it too soon to go with an Experimental Framework Blazor?