7 Features which can help you choose the right front end development framework

Author: Akash Malewar

End users always seek easy to use, robust and intuitive applications. They are always impressed by the workflows that will help them find the most relevant information and features which will amaze them.

Ideally, front end development should always be focused on creating business centric user experiences. Page layouts, designs, engaging functionalities, responsiveness, workflows and navigation experience plays important role in defining interactive, stable and consistent user interface.

OBJECTIVE

New front end frameworks and updates hit the market every day and it is crucial for businesses to find out the most compatible framework for their legacy applications and for the future digital initiatives. Objective of this article is not to pin down a particular framework but to highlight crucial attributes to consider before selecting one.

1. FLEXIBILITY

The framework must bring range of configuration options and must be easier to customize as per the dynamic development requirements. It should be easy to maintain and easy to integrate with new as well as legacy applications facilitating fast and seamless user experience.

2. VIBRANT DEVELOPER COMMUNITY

An active developer community helps a lot in facilitating development. Imagine sharing ideas with like-minded people who have rectified same bugs, faced similar challenges and have solutions for all your queries. Conducive, isn’t it?

3. PERFORMANCE AND PRODUCTIVITY

Performance is one of the most important attribute for deciding the appropriate framework. Many frameworks receive continuous updates and their updated versions offer good performance but it is necessary to evaluate all with respect to your requirements, business goals and objectives.

4. SERVER SIDE RENDERING

Earlier frameworks followed the approach of sending code to client making the accessibility completely dependent on browser performance and bandwidth. Server side rendering puts the burden on server for initial render resulting into improved performance.

5. LIGHT WEIGHT

The byte size of the code has huge impact on browser performance and overall usability of the application. Addition of custom code and third party libraries impacts the byte size a lot making the application more and more difficult to access. Usually, user base of the application extends in many countries where network bandwidth is cramped, so it is necessary to choose the framework which is small in size.

6. SUPPORT

Chose a framework which has solid backup and support in the years to come. If possible, you can do some fundamental research to find out more in this regard. For example, well known frameworks like React and Angular have backup of eminent global tech leaders like Facebook and Google respectively making them more suitable than others.

7. OTHER ATTRIBUTES

Without developer tools it is impossible to do debugging and unit testing is must for large-enterprise level applications. Hence, developer tools and unit testing support are some of the attributes that need to be considered before making the framework selection.

SUMMARY

There is no single framework which will fit in all the defined criteria. But, if you define your requirements clearly, analyze the future development scope and most importantly consider your business goals then above mentioned attributes can help you find the most suitable front end framework.