What is Angular?
Angular is an open-source typescript-based framework that strips away unnecessary features to improve the development process. With the help of Angular, you can create dynamic single-page applications with lots of functionality. Here HTML can be used as a template language and there is no need to rely on third-party libraries to develop dynamic applications.
Angular is also an open framework and platform for building single-page applications written in TypeScript and supported and developed by Google. Angular was originally intended to be version 2 of the popular AngularJS framework. Still, design decisions such as lack of backwards compatibility and an easy upgrade path for applications written in AngularJS to his Angular 2 led Google to release it as a separate entity. Angular is released under the MIT license. Angular has distinct advantages as a framework while providing a standard structure for developers to work with. This allows users to build large-scale applications in a maintainable manner.
Let’s understand how we can use Angular for front-end development.
Angular is a great front-end development framework for modern online projects. With a clean and streamlined architecture, modular design, and component structure, we can address today’s problems by creating the right user interfaces for web platforms and mobile applications.
Most of the components in Angular applications are HTML templates. The browser does not interpret directly the components and templates provided by Angular can, so we must compile Angular apps before we can use them in the browser. During the build step, the Angular compiler converts Angular HTML and TypeScript code into effective JavaScript code before the browser downloads and executes that code.
Angular as a backend
As a backend developer, you should know concepts like object-oriented programming, services, dependency injection, web API, error handling, and unit testing. Also with all the backend skills, he needs to understand frontend frameworks to build client applications in HTML, CSS and JS.
Angular is not preferred for backend development but can be used for his UI design, which is API based on the backend.
6 Reasons to Prefer Angular Over Other TypeScript Frameworks
Now that you have a basic understanding of Angular and its features, let’s discuss why Angular is the perfect choice for your development project.
1. Powered by Google
One of the biggest advantages of Angular is that it’s powered by Google. Google provides Long Term Support (LTS) for Angular. This underscores Google’s plans to stick with the framework and continue scaling the Angular ecosystem.
Google apps also use Angular, and the team is very optimistic about its stability. Other Angular developers also have a unique opportunity to learn from Google’s Angular Certified Professionals.
2. TypeScript
Angular applications are built using the TypeScript language. The TypeScript language is a superscript of JavaScript, supporting types (primitives and interfaces) and thus increasing security. It helps you find and eliminate bugs early in the process while writing code or performing maintenance tasks.
Unlike CoffeeScript and Dart, TypeScript is not a separate language. TypeScript allows you to take the existing ES5 or ES2015+ JS code and compile it based on your configuration.
Full support for ES2015 and ES2016/ES2017 core features such as decorators and async/await.
One can also debug TypeScript code directly in your browser or editor if you created the appropriate mapping files at build time. The language improves navigation, refactoring, and autocomplete services. You can also disable built-in features if you prefer.
3 Declarative UI
Angular uses HTML to define an application’s user interface. HTML is a simple language compared to JavaScript. It’s also a declarative and intuitive language with directives such as ng-app, ng-model, ng-repeat, and form controls.
With its help, you don’t have to spend time in program flow or decide what to load first. Just define what you want and Angular will take care of it.
4. Code Consistency and Reusability
Code consistency is the foundation of a strong and successful development environment. Thanks to the Angular CLI (Command-Line Interface) and style guides in the documentation, both guarantee pioneer-level consistency. The Angular CLI tools allow Angular developers to create initial projects, run tests, and integrate distinct features into the same project while the whole team stays on the same page.
Additionally, Angular enables code reuse and simplifies the development process, requiring relatively little time and effort
5. Default Ivy Renderer
The new Angular engine includes features such as highly optimized bundle size and faster component loading. With the Ivy renderer, organizations get unparalleled code debugging and a user-friendly app experience. Additionally, reducing the file size makes the framework more accessible and instantiated, making it a feature-rich platform for app development.
6. Modular Structure
Angular organizes code into buckets, whether they are components, directives, pipes, or services. Angular experts call these buckets modules. Modules make it easy to organize your application’s functionality by dividing it into functions and reusable blocks. Modules also enable lazy loading, paving the way for loading application functionality in the background or on demand.
When should we use Angular?
The beauty of Angular is that it can be used to design apps in many environments. The following types of apps can help you decide if it makes sense for you. Use Angular, especially when designing web apps for all kinds of environments.
Dynamic web apps
Where content and some components are displayed depending on the accessing user and the consuming client (web or mobile).
Business-level web apps
Thanks to Typescript, we can design our applications by reusing components and different modules. Also, various libraries can save you a lot of work in your projects.
Single-Page Apps/Progressive Web Apps (SPA/PWA)
If you need to design minimalistic and highly dynamic apps, Angular is the way to go
Features and Usage of Angular
1. Document Object Model
DOM (Document Object Model) treats an XML or HTML document as a tree structure where each node represents a part of the document.
Angular uses regular DOM. Consider that 10 updates are done on the same HTML page. Instead of updating what has already been updated, Angular updates the entire tree structure of HTML tags.
2. TypeScript
TypeScript defines a set of types for JavaScript. This helps you write JavaScript code that is easier for your users to understand. All TypeScript code is compiled in JavaScript and runs smoothly on any platform. TypeScript is not required to develop Angular applications. However, it is highly recommended as it makes the code base easier to understand and maintain while providing a better syntactic structure.
3. Data Binding
Data binding is the process of allowing users to manipulate web page elements through a web browser. It uses dynamic HTML and doesn’t require complex scripting or programming. Data binding is used in web pages that contain interactive components such as calculators, tutorials, forums, games, etc. It can also improve incremental rendering of web pages when the page contains a large amount of data.
Angular uses two-way binding. A model’s status reflects changes made to the corresponding UI element. Conversely, the UI status reflects changes in the model status. This feature allows the framework to connect the DOM to the model data through controllers.
4. Testing
Angular uses the Jasmine Testing Framework. Jasmine framework provides multiple features for creating different types of test cases. Karma is a test task runner that uses configuration files to set up launches, reporters, and test frameworks.