Everything about Web and Network Monitoring
Everything about Web and Network Monitoring
JavaScript has emerged in the past couple years as the de facto expression of next generation web technologies, and a critical component of HTML5 technologies – along with CSS and JQuery. JavaScript is really ubiquitous – it really is showing up everywhere! There are many other reasons why JavaScript and JS-based tools like JSON and Node.js are becoming the wave of the future. JavaScript is the #1 most-used language on GitHub, and this trend is only going to increase. Gartner has also stated in its top strategic trends forecast of 2014 that JavaScript improvements will continue to “push HTML5 and the browser as a mainstream enterprise application development environment.”
In the battle for the development of the next generation web the star of the show has really become JavaScript. As one article put it, “JavaScript is the number one language in the world; it’s the language of the web, and a starting point for so many new developers . . .”
In order to more fully understand the increasing prevalence of JavaScript in the enterprise mobile, server-side, Big Data, and cloud markets, let’s list out here 5 good reasons why it’s a good idea to learn this language.
1. Mobile App Development
We’ve all heard that “mobile is the future.” Without rehashing the whole Native vs. HTML5 debate, suffice it to say that mobile application development frameworks like PhoneGap have opened up new opportunities to create native like mobile functionality through JavaScript API calls. Both Apple and Google have incorporated JavaScript into their mobile development toolkits in order to extend their developer base. Those who can code in JS will be in strong demand for the future of mobile enabled applications and websites.
2. Backend Server-side Development
Those who are less interested in the pizzazz factor in mobile app development can still find their niche in back end development with JS. While not historically associated with server-side development, JavaScript has received rapid adoption in recent years through the influence of Node.js, a software platform used for building fast, scalable network applications. Node.js is based on Google’s V8 JavaScript engine, or the Chrome browser runtime, and has gained immense popularity among major enterprises in recent years.
3. Big Data & Cloud Development
Big Data and JS have a great future together, and folks with skills in both areas will be in high demand. JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) has become the major standard today for data interchange used on the modern web. NoSQL databases such as MongoDB use JSON documents in order to store records in the same way that relational databases like MySQL use tables and rows to store records. JSON can be used with any programming language but it’s a natural fit for JavaScript developers to connect their applications to Big Data.
Node.js is also an increasingly popular choice for building cloud applications and is one of the top four languages supported by 5 of the 6 major platform-as-a-service offerings as Google, Amazon, and Microsoft Azure. According to this infographic, Node.js development is growing faster than ever with 35,000 downloads a day and there are now over 88,000 modules available.
4. Coding the Future (Job Security)
Coders and programmers are the architects of the digital era. Line after line of functions, classes, objects, and loops are building our digital world into a place of unrealized new possibilities. But as we’ve seen in particular, anyone who has the ability to code in JavaScript or to gain fluency in a tool like Node.js will be able to write their own ticket to the future. Whether building the next generation of high performance mobile apps or developing a cloud service stack, those with JavaScript abilities will be the primary architects of the digital world and will find no lack of jobs and opportunities awaiting them!
5. Online Learning Opportunities
A growing number of online tutorials and classes that teach JavaScript have emerged in recent years. Platforms like Codecademy, Udacity, W3Schools.com, and General Assembly are providing millions of people with the opportunities to learn JavaScript (and other languages) in an engaging and interactive manner. The real ambitious can try out a growing number of coding bootcamps, where you enroll onsite for usually 6 weeks or more of full-scale immersion.
JavaScript is fast becoming a central part of our digital future as more and more technologies are relaying upon this codebase for their basic functionality. With all the jobs out there that require knowledge of JS, what are you waiting for? If you want to speak the language of the digital future then familiarize yourself with JavaScript and how it works today. There have never been more opportunities. And who knows? With your new JavaScript skills you might write the next cool application that changes the world!
