The simpler, smaller and lighter an application is, the cheaper and easier it will be to write from scratch. When Nick Gauthier set out to build MeetSpace, he and his team had a familiar decision to make: What’s our tech stack going to be? They gathered their requirements, reviewed their skillset and ultimately decided to use vanilla JavaScript and to avoid a front-end framework. Using this approach, they were able to create an incredibly fast and light web application that is also less work to maintain over time.
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With dozens of responsive design frameworks available to download, many web developers appear to be unaware of any except for Bootstrap. Like most of web development, responsive design frameworks are not one-size-fits-all. Let’s compare the latest versions of Bootstrap, Foundation and UIkit for their similarities and differences. These are popular frameworks with piles of features out of the box, making them attractive to many development firms wanting to work with “Bootstrap or a close equivalent.”
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One of the upcoming features of JavaScript that I especially like is the support for asynchronous functions. In this article, I would like to show you a very practical example of building a server-side application using Koa 2, a new version of the web framework, which relies heavily on this feature.
First, I’ll recap what async functions are and how they work. Then, I’ll highlight the differences between Koa 1 and Koa 2. After that, I will describe my demo app for Koa 2, covering all aspects of development, including testing (using Mocha, Chai and Supertest) and deployment (using PM2).
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How do we make sure the website layout stays responsive and displays correctly on all kinds of devices with various resolutions? In this article, Ivan Shubin will guide you through an interesting new layout testing technique. Using Galen Framework, he will provide a detailed tutorial for writing meaningful generalized layout tests, which can be executed in any browser and on any device and at the same time used as a single source of truth in your design documentation. You will learn how to extend Galen’s syntax with your own language, how to improve the test code and how to turn a layout testing routine into art.
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BEM has been an absolute lifesaver for me in my effort to create applications in a modular, component-driven way. David Berner has been using it for nearly three years now, and the problems above are the few stumbling blocks he’s hit along the way. This article aims to be useful for people who are already BEM enthusiasts and wish to use it more effectively or people who are curious to learn more about it.
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Ember is a JavaScript web framework focused on building ambitious, rich client web applications. Technologically, Ember has positioned itself as the antidote to hype fatigue. It’s a framework that just won’t die, but keeps pressing on with each innovation and with a commitment to backwards–compatibility. If you’ve been waiting to give Ember a try, why not start today with Ember CLI? It provides a productive and feature–rich development experience. All you need to get started and create an Ember App using Ember CLI is right here below.
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In this introductory article, Slava Fomin II will show you the most important parts of the Sails framework and give you some specific examples to get you going. Of course, if you want to use it in your daily work, you will have to spend some time mastering it and taking it to the next level. The good news is that Sails comes with pretty solid documentation and an active community. The creator of Sales even answers questions on StackOverflow personally. He’ll neither confirm nor deny that Sails is being developed by a giant smart octopus, but he will do his best to guide you from the humble ensign to being the confident captain of your own ship! You will not be alone.
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In this second part, Yury Vetrov will show you how he made his “Bootstrap on steroids” more powerful. A framework like this has many benefits, but the main result is a transition from large redesigns every couple of years to constantly updated designs. We can spend more time evolving a product rather than doing endless design maintenance. Moreover, product designers stop thinking in screens and become less like “Photoshop/Sketch people”.
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The number of Flux implementations available can feel overwhelming, but overall Jim Cowart finds it an encouraging development. Solid and successful patterns like Flux will, by their very nature, encourage multiple implementations. In this article, Jim will take a look at some of the key lessons he has learned about React and Flux. Whether you’re new to React and Flux, or going as far as building your own Flux implementation, Jim thinks you’ll not only enjoy this journey, but find some thought-provoking questions and wisdom you can apply in your own endeavors.
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Because Foundation for Apps was only released at the end of 2014, it hasn’t yet seen widespread usage, so there are few good sources of information on using the framework. In this article, Stephen Saucier brings you a comprehensive guide to build a functional web app with Foundation for Apps from start to finish. The techniques detailed here are fundamental to building practically any kind of app for any client, and this tutorial also serves as a strong introduction to the wider world of AngularJS and single-page apps.
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