Why Choose Node.js for Web Development in 2021

Posted on by Jackie Cowan
Reading Time: 5 minutes

Introduction 

Choosing an appropriate web app development technology is a challenging task nowadays. Currently, we have many programming languages, frameworks, and technologies that make it difficult for entrepreneurs and business owners to select the right development tool.

In the era of web app development, maintaining project efficiency has now become essential. The longer you take to complete the task, the costlier it will become for your organization.

Node.js for web development is a revolutionary technology that offers unique features. Developers regard it as one of the most efficient cross-platforms JavaScript environments that can help you build robust and effective REST APIs, mobile applications, and web applications.

What is Node.js? 

Node.js is not just a library or framework; it is an independent runtime environment. It relies on Chrome's V8, a JavaScript engine that can execute an application code itself irrespective of the type of browser or operating system. This independence is why Node.js is considered a standalone application on any machine.

Benefits of Node.js 

Create Real-Time Applications

One of the prime benefits of Node.js is that it allows you to develop supercharged applications that give immediate results. Web applications powered by Node.js enable you to perform multiple tasks at once. It offers single-threaded and event-driven architecture that helps you process numerous concurrent requests without affecting RAM.

Ensures the Availability of Developers

When it comes to web application development, JavaScript offers a lot of variety since it operates on desktop via Electron and mobile via PhoneGap, React Native, Cordova, etc. This variety helps many companies focus on their front-end and back-end web developers who have sound knowledge in JavaScript. Additionally, this will help Node.js Web development companies find maintenance programmers for the longer run.

SEO-friendly

SEO plays an integral role in web app development, and no IT firms would miss out on SEO opportunities. Node.js backend rendering provides excellent visibility to sites. That happens so that search engines can effectively optimize the React Projects. Since Node.js offers high speed and high performance, it is considered the best framework to improve SEO strategies.

Simple & Easy hosting

Many open-source software development agencies prefer Node.js for web development. In addition, Node.js hosting eliminates a lot of waiting times, so the platform regularly adds new features and functionalities that help people who are associated with offering PaaS (platform-as-a-service) services.

Allows Easy Sharing

Easy sharing of the NPM (Node Package Manager) is the primary reason why many web development companies consider Node.js over other frameworks. With Node.js, you can share anything easily, which will result in increasing speed for other development activities. For example, many Node.js developers use NPM to share things while working on a joint project. In addition, NPM also enables them to maintain and deploy code easily.

It is Cost-Effective

You do not have to spend a lot of money while developing web apps with Node.js. Nowadays, organizations that utilize Node.js development spend less computing power for hosting web applications. In addition, Node.js is faster than other frameworks, reducing overall project costs by 56%.

Allows Single Code Base

As many frameworks use various programming languages for both client-side and server-side web development, Node.js stands apart from them since it enables developers to utilize a single-codebase to write codes for complex web app development projects. Given the scenario where some frameworks use multiple languages, companies need to find profound developers in more than one codebase.

Gives Long-term Support

Node.js offers support for eighteen months after the release of its latest version. During this time frame, no new features will clash with the current version, and the development team will take care of all the security updates and bug fixes. As of now, 49.9% of developers seek long-term support for software development, and Node.js facilitates them with the support service and enables them to increase the application’s performance.

Deploys Web App Easily

Web apps developed using Node.js are easy to deploy. This framework enables developers to finish and test all parts of a web application relatively easily. Many PWA development agencies find this framework quite useful since it helps accelerate the final deployment of web applications.

Drawbacks of Node.js 

Reduced Performance for Complex Computing Tasks

Even though Node.js is a single-threaded and event-driven framework, it could not effectively execute heavy CPU-based computing. To elaborate more, Node.js uses all the provided CPU’s strength to accomplish the project. This use of resources slows down the overall event loop and damages the interface of the application.

Difficult to Maintain Code

Due to Node.js following an asynchronous approach, the technology overall relies a lot on callbacks. This function starts operating just after every task in the queue, safeguarding other queued tasks in the background. Therefore, callbacks directly affect the quality and performance of the code. As a result, Node.js users have to face many limitations, making it tedious and difficult to maintain.

Lack of Library Support

Lack of library support is another drawback that every Node.js user has to deal with while using this technology. Though it has several NPM registries and libraries, they are of poor quality and not documented appropriately. So, for a beginner developing a web application in Node.js would become a hectic task.

Best Practices for Node.js

Take A Layered Approach

The Node.js framework allows you to determine route handlers as callback functions performed when a client request is received. Since this framework provides excellent flexibility, developers are always keen to define all business logic inside those functions. However, it also affects your code, making them difficult to read and maintain.

That is why it is essential to segment your application modules as per your project requirements. You must define different modules for different concerns related to the applications. You can segment modules in three different ways mentioned below:

  • Controller layer
  • Service layer
  • Data access layer 

Folder Structure

Earlier, we have discussed how we can separate modules into three different layers. Now we will see how a proper folder structure can separate other modules into different folders.

When you properly organize your code files, you will have clarity about which functionality gets managed where. Besides, this will enable you to organize classes and methods into separate containers. Mentioned below is an effective folder structure used as a template while setting up Node.js for a new web development project.

Every developer wishes to read cleanly organized and structured code. That is why folder structure is a very effective practice you can develop while working on Node.js.

Clean Code and Easy Readability

The prime objective is to enhance the quality of the code and make it easy to read. Most code setup workflows utilize code formatter and linter to improve the quality and enhance the readability of the code. A code linter gives you insight into incorrect code syntax, whereas a code formatter is a style guideline for formatting code.

ESLint, JSLint, and JSHint are some of the most popular code linters (tools to help improve your code) used for JavaScript. 

Prettier is a widely preferred code formatter for JavaScript. Apart from this, some editors, like Visual Studio Code, Atom, etc., know the significance of writing clean code. They already have plug-ins for code linting and formatting, which are very reliable and easy to use.

Conclusion

We hope this article will help you understand why Node.js for web development is an effective alternative in building scalable and robust web applications. Liquid Web offers managed hosting solutions for your next Node.js project. Contact our sales team to discuss your requirements to find the best solution.

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About the Author: Jackie Cowan

Jackie Cowan is the Communications Manager for Liquid Web. She received her MS in Communications from the Ithaca College, MLIS in Library and Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh, and BBA in Management Information Systems from the University of Michigan. She has 10 years of experience with technical and billing support, search engine optimization, and spearheading projects to enhance company culture.

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