April 28, 2020 — Light mode is a convention in most web and mobile apps. However, in modern development, we have seen how dark mode, which displays light text and interface elements on a dark background, is quickly becoming a user preference. In this article, Blessing Krofegha will show you how to efficiently implement dark mode in a React app on a simple web page, using the styled-components library and leveraging some React features like hooks. We will also discuss the pros and cons of dark mode and why it should be adopted. Read more…

April 27, 2020 — Developers often worry about the SEO of their SPAs (Single Page Applications) and how well they would do on Google searches (blogs, portfolio websites, product websites, and so on). Sometimes, they also worry about how complex building a server-side rendered application might be. In this tutorial, we’re going to learn how to create server-side rendered applications by using Nuxt.js, how to configure your application for development, and how to deploy to Heroku. Read more…

April 24, 2020 — Whatever stage you’re at in your career, coding collaboratively is one of the best uses of your time. With remote working on the rise, there’s never been a better time to practice pair programming and embrace Agile development. Read more…

April 23, 2020 — Node.js is an interesting tool for web developers. With its high level of concurrency, it has become a leading candidate for people choosing tools to use in web development. In this article, we will learn about what makes up Node.js, give it a meaningful definition, understand how the internals of Node.js interact with one another, and explore the project repository for Node.js on GitHub. Read more…

April 22, 2020 — Flutter has already made quite a splash on the mobile development scene. Now it’s taking on bigger devices as well. In this article, Carmine Zaccagnino will show you what you need to know to be ready to take on the task of developing web and desktop apps using this wonderful cross-platform framework. Flutter is a lovely framework, very easy to use, and its extreme cross-platform support only makes it more essential to learn and start using. So, go ahead and start trusting Flutter for web apps, too! Read more…

April 21, 2020 — A landing page is a standalone webpage created to support a specific marketing campaign or targeting a particular search term. They are where users “land” when they click a link in search results, email or an ad. In this article, Paul Boag will show you how to create a compelling landing page, which involves a combination of clear focus, persuasive copy, considered design and relentless testing. Without all four your page will fail. Read more…

April 21, 2020 — In this episode of the Smashing Podcast, we’re talking about running online workshops. How can a traditional event adapt when participants can’t attend in person? Drew McLellan talks to Rachel Andrew to find out. Read more…

April 20, 2020 — Skeleton screens offer a better user experience by reducing loading-time frustration. By focusing on progress instead of wait times, it create the illusion for users that information will be incrementally displayed on the screen. In this tutorial, Blessing Krofegha will show you what a skeleton screen UI is and some types of skeleton screen libraries, along with their pros and cons. We’ll build a YouTube-like skeleton screen UI using React Loading Skeleton. Then, you can experiment on your own with the skeleton screen React package of your choice. Read more…

April 17, 2020 — A month is a long time to stay on top of things. Here you’ll find an overview of everything we’ve been working on and have also enjoyed reading over the past month. Of course, you can always find us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, and also stay updated with our RSS feed as well as our Smashing Newsletter (sent out every second week with all sorts of goodies!). Read more…

April 16, 2020 — The admin panel is one of the most powerful, flexible features that the Django web framework provides, combining instant off-the-shelf functionality with infinite customization. Using an example project based on a library inventory system, we’ll use the admin panel to learn about creating models and interacting with relational databases in Django. Read more…