The world of web development is always being updated with new technologies, standards, and useful pieces of code. Therefore, mastery of web languages must be complemented with knowledge of libraries and frameworks — which help in solving problems. After all, if there are ready-made and easier methods to solve something, why not use them, right?
JavaScript is a champion technology when it comes to frameworks and libraries. New ones are always emerging. However, some of them remain relevant years after their emergence on the market. One of them is React, a library that was created by Facebook and later became an open-source standard.
Knowing what React is is an important step for anyone who wants to build modern and powerful web applications. So, here’s a better understanding of the features of this library and what you need to know about it.
What is React for?
React is a powerful library for building visual interfaces in JavaScript . In other words, it is an ideal tool for front-end development . In React, you can adopt HTML and JavaScript structures in a single code, in order to manipulate the presentation aspects of a website.
Since it is a library, it is a set of ready-made codes and specific functions to deal with certain problems. For those who work with front-end (visual part) or full-stack, this resource is a lifesaver.
Initially, the technology was developed as a way for Facebook to deal with the problem of synchronizing components on its page . After all, an application like the Facebook home page contains several elements open at the same time that need to be synchronized: the chat, a menu with main icons, the timeline, among others.
So, when a change occurred in one of these elements, such as in the chat, the company detected a problem to mirror this change to the others in an agile and simplified way.
Think, for example, about the interface of a streaming platform like Spotify. On the desktop app, there’s a section for playlists, another for albums you can choose from, and one for showing what people you know are listening to. Or your email site, which lets you compose and send a message, while still displaying your inbox.
When a new person appears listening to a song on Spotify, the friends section is updated and this syncs perfectly with the other parts of the app that don’t change or reload. This is what Facebook was looking for for its website, but with a simple logic.
Then, React emerged as a way to deal with these issues. Over time, it has become one of the most powerful tools for single-page applications — the name we give to a page that refreshes without completely reloading.
Source: Digital Clarity Group
A classic example of this mechanism in action is the appearance of real-time likes on Facebook. The information changes without having to reload the entire page and happens in real time for the user.
React’s success is evident. To this day, it remains one of the most important technologies to complement JavaScript. According to a Stack Overflow survey , it is the most loved library in the community .
What do you need to know about this library?
Now, let’s move on to some interesting facts and important features of this library that you should know about.
Uses JavaScript, one of the most popular languages
React is based on the famous JavaScript, as we have already mentioned. For this reason, studying React means having contact with one of the most versatile and sought-after languages of the moment. Mastering this technology certainly represents great opportunities in the market.
It is simple to use for beginners
React is not one of the most complex web development patterns by far. It is actually very simple to use . It is what we call a declarative language, as it controls the visual aspects of the website indirectly, without the programmer having to manage this in the code. Thus, it abstracts a lot of the technical aspects.
Additionally, React can be used with a standard called JSX , which is a way of writing that uses HTML inside JavaScript. So, if you already know the markup language, you won’t have any major problems with the library.
Allows the organization and reuse of components
In software development, the word reuse has a very important and special meaning. People in the field always try to create something thinking about making it usable in some way again for someone else in another context or even for the creator herself in other projects. It has to do with the collaborative culture of the IT world itself.
In React, to reinforce this issue, all visual aspects are considered independent and reusable components. In other words, a form on one site can be applied to another, as long as it meets the objectives of both. The form itself is independent of the other parts.
Optimizes DOM update – Document Object Model
To do the magic that allows a page to keep updating in real time, React uses the notion of virtual DOM. The DOM is basically the structure of visual elements of the skeleton of our website . It is a tree with all the components that structure our HTML, for example: the H1, the p, the Head, the Body, the Div.
Source: Stack Overflow
The virtual DOM is a virtualized structure manipulated in memory to organize the necessary changes before they are applied to the actual DOM. This way, updates and changes to the website are applied intelligently and quickly.
It’s good for SEO
Because of its handling of a virtualized DOM and its logic of simplifying changes to websites, React is great for SEO. It optimizes the loading and speed of a website, favoring the UX (user experience) and the positioning of the website in search rankings.
And React Native: what is it?
Due to its success, the needs for React began to expand. Soon, the demand for a React for mobile emerged . That’s where React Native came in.
The native version applies code reuse and logic similar to its web version to optimize the loading of new information and the speed of apps, both for iOS and Android. It uses Hot Reloading, for example, to reduce loading time. In addition, it provides more efficient integration with smartphone features, such as camera and location.
Development in the library’s typical writing pattern is all converted to a native language of the device itself.
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As we’ve seen in this article, React is one of the hottest technologies in web development right now. It’s a library that can complement JavaScript to create dynamic websites that update quickly and provide a rich and exciting experience for users. It’s also good for SEO. For these and other reasons, it’s important that you know what React is and learn this technology.
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