Seven Things You Should Know About Node

As the popularity of Node.js continues to grow each day, it is highly likely that you will use it when you are building your next web application. Coders are using it in order to create real time web APIs as it is the best runtime system that you can use for the creation of server-side applications. It is a highly customizable server engine that you can set up the way you like for it to work better for you. It is always ready to accept and to respond to its users requests. For someone who is looking for a system that is exceptionally easy to use, Node,js is it, and will transform the way you start to build networks or other event driven applications. Below are some of the most important things you should know about Node.js.

1. Node.js is Very Fast

Node.js uses a V8 engine, which will compile and execute JavaScript at very high speeds. This is mainly because V8 takes JavaScript as a native machine code.

Another thing about Node.js is its event loop; this is a single thread that will perform all operations asynchronously. Its ability to perform all I/O operations asynchronously ensures that you do not experience any delays.

When using Node.js, you will experience fast reading and writing to network connections, file systems and databases. These are all very important operations when one is building applications.

To sum it up, when using Node.js you will take pride in the fact that you have very fast and scalable web applications that can handle a good number of connections working simultaneously and still expect high output.
javascript

2. You can easily share with Node.js

Sharing of library code packages is easily allowed in the Node.js community. These packages can be shared culturally, legally, procedurally as well as technically. Node.js comes with Node Package Manager, since there are a large number of packages included. This makes it highly likely that you will find the package you need, as someone else may have already created it.

You can create your own Node.js packages, then share them with ease with other users. To create a package, you can use the code below:

hello
| index.js
| package.json

Once the package has been created, you can use the code below to use the package in another app.

hello-world
| app.js

You can now navigate the package to its folder, then run it. Once you have run it, you can now use it as any other Node.js package.

Also See: Top 10 IDEs for Developing Node.js Apps

3. Node.js has Great Real-Time Power

Real time has been significantly simplified with Node.js. It works very well in many concurrent connections which thus makes it excellent in multi-user real time apps for instance games, chats and so much more.

The multi-user requirement in node.js is handled well by its event loop while its real time power is experienced through use of websocket protocol; this is basically a two way communication channel between the server and the client using Node.js. With this communication channel, the client can send data with ease to the server, the same way the server can send data easily to the client.

An example of a websocket protocol that is quite popular today is socket.io. Below is an illustration of how a server using this protocol works:

var app = require(‘http’).createServer(handler)
var io = require(‘socket.io’)(app);

app.listen(8080);

io.on(‘connection’, function (socket) {
// Send a message to the client
socket.emit(‘event to client’, { hello: ‘world’ });
// Handle a message from the client
socket.on(‘event from client, function (data) {
console.log(data);
});
});

4. Node.js offers event driven programming

Node.js uses events all the way, and this explains why it is faster than any other similar technology out there. Once you start Node.js server, it will just initiate its variables, then declare its functions and wait for events to occur.

In such an application, there is the main loop, whose mandate is to listen out for events in order to trigger the callback function just in case one of the events that have been triggered, or even all of them are detected.
eventloop

Below is an example of an illustration of what actually happens:

// Import events module
var events = require(‘events’);
// Create an eventEmitter object
var eventEmitter = new events.EventEmitter();

Also Check: 10 Best Web Hosting Platforms for Node.js Apps

5. Node.js is usually fully instrumented for use in production

With Node.js, you have everything that you will need in order to build up an application and bring it for full production as well as performance. Node.js has all the tools that will help you in the creation of functional applications without you looking for other tools elsewhere.

It is a solid technology that has it all and will offer everything that you will need to create an app that will be up and running in no time at all.

Node.js instrumented for use in production

6. You can use one codebase with Node.js

With Node.js, you are allowed to develop an app that will allow you to use just one codebase for both the server and the client. This will also make it possible to synchronize data between the two. The framework that you will be using in this kind of app will be Meteor.

Meteor is an amazing framework that allows app users to run the same codes on both the server and the user. If you write a client code, it will automatically save to the database, and this data will automatically reflect in the server.in case of any changes on the data will be sent to the client as well as to the server. Below is a code that explains this well:

// Save the value of ‘name’ upon clicking ‘submit’ directly in the browser!
‘.click .submit’: function(e, tpl) {
Users.update(
{ _id: this._id },
{ $set: { name: $(‘.name’).val() }}
);
}

7. Its future is well taken care of

So many open-source projects are run by volunteer maintainers. In this case, their future is not always a guarantee and they could fail terribly however good they can be. This is different with Node.js. In as much as it is an open source technology, it has the backup of a corporate caretaker, its sponsor and it has the backing up of a real company which has assured its future.

The project is also backed up by other major companies like Yahoo, Microsoft, and PayPal among many others. This means that it is here to stay and so, its reliability is guaranteed.

These seven points reveal just how amazing Node.js is. Web developers will find more than they need and expect when looking to create an amazing app. Use Node.js and let your imagination and creativity free. Its ease of use makes it the best choice around.