At times we find out that our website has a full-bodied architecture that doesn’t come off nice. In order to avoid that and make it look more interactive and catchy, we have front-end developers. In this learn guide we have curated a brief about what front-end development is all about. However, if you wish to go into more detail, you may find our main learn guide towards the conclusion of this article.?
Meaning of Front-end Development
Front-end development is the plan of action to build a website with the help of web development tools like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It essentially works on the visual aspects of a website for it to be more interactive in nature so that more users engage with it. This is what front-end development is all about.
Roadmap To Master Front-end Development
This roadmap shall guide you through and cover skills from beginner to advanced level.
Beginner Skills
There are 6 broad beginner skills that you need to have
- HTML - HyperText Markup Language designs documents on web browsers. You need to learn the basics of such programming languages along with writing efficient codes, forms and validations etc.
- CSS - Cascading Style Sheet works on presentational aspects of the website. You need to learn basics along with creating layouts, responsive designs etc.
- JavaScript - JS works with the application programming interfaces(API’s) for managing the standard data structures and numerical aspects of a website. You must know hosting, scope, event bubbling etc in JS.
- Internet - You must understand the difference between HTTP and HTTPS and how they both function, and find out how different browsers work.
- Text Editor/IDE - The features provided by integrated development environment (IDE) help in writing your code while making it convenient. It enables you to write, test and debug your code easily.
- Version Control System - understanding what VCS is will require you to know how Repo Hosting services work. The most widely used service is GitHub. Its primary job is to create a hassle-free working environment for the developers of the team.
Intermediate Skills
These 6 intermediate-level skills will be required for long-term front-end tasks. These are:
- Programming Languages - We would suggest learning C++ or Java in-depth if you have not already and supplementing that with another programming language, C, Go, Scala, or Swift.
- Package Managers (API) - Node Package Manager (NPM) is a popularly used package management tool in JavaScript. Some of the developers also prefer using yarn for the same purpose. This is the next step in the list of skills.
- Testing and Debugging Tools - Testing must be followed to ensure the software is free of defects. Jest and cypress are apps developed for testing high-level web applications.
- Framework and Libraries - Open-source libraries and packages can easily build some of the most productive front-end models typically applied to solve different types of industry problems. Some of the most widely employed front-end frameworks are: React, Angular, Vuejs and jQuery
- Data Structure and Algorithms - Knowledge of certain data structures and algorithms is a must here in order to write codes. Writing efficient codes results in the smooth running of sites in worst-case scenarios.
- Deployment - It is the task of?Web Assembly, which is like a portable compiler for programming languages and enables web deployments for clients and server apps.
Advance Skills
After developing the above skills, some advanced skills are there that front-end developers should be comfortable with.
- SASS? (Syntactically Awesome Style Sheets) - is a CSS extension that works on all CSS versions and helps extend the functionalities of CSS programs like easier nesting.
- AngularJS - It?helps extend the static HTML program into a dynamic HTML program to develop richer websites.
- jQuery - It?helps you with several functionalities like DOM manipulation, Animation, and Ajax/JSON support.
- Visual Studio Code - can function across any OS like macOS, Microsoft, and Linux. It, by default, supports JavaScript, TypeScript, and Node.js and got a new update for supporting programming languages like C++, Python, and PHP.?
- Node Package Manager - The package management tool in JavaScript enables you to discover and install code packages to reuse them in your current programs and provides you access to previously downloaded packages or dependencies.?
- Grunt - It makes it quite easy to prepare the workflow. It also automates repetitive functions with little effort. It has built-in functionality for supporting plugins and scripts, resulting in increased development speed and improvement in project performance.?
- Typescript - It?is a syntactical superset of JavaScript language that can work on any platform irrespective of the browser, providing top-notch features and stepping up your work on JavaScript.?
Final Thoughts
Front end development is a highly creative career and you can reach at the top levels just by acquiring the right skills for it. Once you do that you are good to go.
Well this was just an overview of what all is in store for someone? going for front end development. However we have a comprehensive learn guide for front end development waiting to be discovered where we basically cover the following:
- Difference between front end and back end.
- Difference between HTTP and HTTPS.
- Role and job opportunities for front-end developers
- E-learning path
We have a lot of learn guides which you can explore from our advice section.
