Introduction to JavaScript Frameworks and Libraries

Before we move on to a final project to work on together, let's introduce you to some powerful tools that can speed up and make your development process more efficient.

These tools are JavaScript frameworks and libraries. By leveraging code written by other developers, you can speed up your development, avoid common pitfalls, and focus on your application's unique aspects.

What Are Frameworks and Libraries?

Libraries: Think of a library as a collection of pre-written code that you can use to perform common tasks. Libraries offer specific functionality that you can call upon when needed. Examples include jQuery, Lodash, and Axios.
Frameworks: A framework is more like a blueprint or skeleton for your application. It provides a structured way to build and organize your code, often including libraries, tools, and best practices. Examples include React, Angular, and Vue.js.

Why Use Them?

Efficiency: Save time by using pre-written code for common tasks.
Consistency: Ensure your code follows industry standards and best practices.
Community Support: Benefit from a large community of developers who contribute to, maintain, and provide support for these tools.
Scalability: Build scalable applications that can grow with your needs.

Popular JavaScript Libraries and Frameworks

Let's explore some of the most popular libraries and frameworks you might find helpful now or in the future. Each tool has its own strengths and use cases, and the developer community widely supports it.

jQuery

jQuery is a fast, small, and feature-rich JavaScript library. It simplifies things like HTML document traversal and manipulation, event handling, and animation. Although newer frameworks and libraries have become more popular, jQuery is still widely used in many legacy codebases.

Why Use jQuery?: If you need to make quick, simple changes to your website or add animations without learning a new framework, jQuery is a great choice.
Docs: You can find the documentation here.

Axios

Axios is a promise-based HTTP client for the browser and Node.js. It makes it easy to send asynchronous HTTP requests to REST endpoints and perform CRUD operations.

Why Use Axios?: It's great for handling HTTP requests and is more versatile and user-friendly compared to the built-in fetch API.
Docs: You can find the documentation here.

React

React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces maintained by Facebook. It allows you to build complex UIs from small, isolated pieces of code called "components."

Why Use React?: It's ideal for building modern, dynamic web applications. React's component-based architecture makes your code more reusable and easier to maintain.
Docs: You can find the documentation here.

Angular

Angular is a platform and framework for building single-page client applications using HTML and TypeScript. It is maintained by Google.

Why Use Angular?: Angular is a full-fledged framework with everything you need to build large-scale applications. It provides robust tools and a solid structure.
Docs: You can find the documentation here.

Vue.js

Vue.js is a progressive framework for building user interfaces. Unlike other monolithic frameworks, Vue is designed to be incrementally adoptable.

Why Use Vue.js?: It's approachable and versatile, making it a great choice for both small projects and large, complex applications.
Docs: You can find the documentation here.

Using a Library in Your Project

There are some really useful libraries you'll find as you start to explore. To bring the concept to life, let's look at a practical example of how you can use a library to extend your logic. We'll use Chart.js to help visualize data with charts.

First, include the Chart.js library in your HTML file. You can do this by adding a <script> tag that loads Chart.js from a CDN (Content Delivery Network). Make sure to load the library script before your own script that uses it.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>Using Chart.js</title>
  <script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/chart.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Using Chart.js in JavaScript</h1>
  <canvas id="myChart" width="400" height="400"></canvas>
  <script src="script.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

You can find all the documentation here that might explain some of the functions that we are calling, but for now, let's just focus on seeing how much magic we can create with a few lines of code thanks to Chart.js.

Let's use Chart.js in our script.js file to create a simple chart.

// script.js

const ctx = document.getElementById("myChart").getContext("2d");
const myChart = new Chart(ctx, {
  type: "bar",
  responsive: true,
  data: {
    labels: ["Red", "Blue", "Yellow", "Green", "Purple", "Orange"],
    datasets: [
      {
        label: "# of Votes",
        data: [12, 19, 3, 5, 2, 3],
        backgroundColor: [
          "rgba(255, 99, 132, 0.2)",
          "rgba(54, 162, 235, 0.2)",
          "rgba(255, 206, 86, 0.2)",
          "rgba(75, 192, 192, 0.2)",
          "rgba(153, 102, 255, 0.2)",
          "rgba(255, 159, 64, 0.2)"
        ],
        borderColor: [
          "rgba(255, 99, 132, 1)",
          "rgba(54, 162, 235, 1)",
          "rgba(255, 206, 86, 1)",
          "rgba(75, 192, 192, 1)",
          "rgba(153, 102, 255, 1)",
          "rgba(255, 159, 64, 1)"
        ],
        borderWidth: 1
      }
    ]
  },
  options: {
    scales: {
      y: {
        beginAtZero: true
      }
    }
  }
});

If you put this all together properly, you should see something like this.

Why This Matters

Rather than always building from scratch, you'll often find tried-and-tested solutions for everyday tasks and challenges, allowing you to focus on developing your application's unique aspects.

By integrating these tools into your projects, you can:

Reduce Development Time: Leverage existing solutions to common problems.
Improve Code Quality: Use well-maintained and widely-used code.
Focus on Features: Spend more time developing unique features rather than reinventing the wheel.

We won't be using any libraries or frameworks for building our final application together but I do think it's good to know they exist so you can go and explore them afterwards.

Don't get too distracted by these libraries and what they can do for you too early, though. It's much better to learn the fundamentals and struggle to learn how to use plain old JavaScript before reaching for these tools too early.

Now, let's move on to the final project together to build an interactive application.