

Apps like VS Code, Discord, Slack, and countless others use Electron, meaning Node is running on many people's computers without them even knowing. The popular Electron framework, which lets developers write cross-platform applications using web technology, also uses Node. Meanwhile, developers can also use Node to build micro services and micro front-ends. This means developers working on the front end of the web use Node just as much as those on the back end. Because it uses npm as its default package manager, it's the de facto platform for any and all types of software development involving web technologies. In practice, Node is more than a JavaScript runtime environment. Released in 2009 by Ryan Dahl, it’s since become one of the most popular web development platforms in the world. Rather than using a language like Python or PHP, Node allows developers to leverage their existing skills on the server as well as in the browser. Node.js is an open-source JavaScript runtime environment made for the server. Readers will also learn how to spin up local Node projects and add dependencies to them so they can start building high-performance apps of their own. Lastly, Node comes bundled with npm, which is a command-line package management tool as well as the largest library for JavaScript tools and software.įor new coders and veteran developers alike, this guide serves as a complete introduction to Node and many of its features, including why it’s an excellent choice for server-side applications. Because Node uses JavaScript, web developers can focus on honing existing skills rather than learning a second server-side language. Ease of use is another contributing factor. Node’s ubiquity is due in part to its architectural approach, which puts it leagues ahead of other languages in terms of performance. And for anyone building high-performance web applications, Node is nearly a requirement. For developers working in the JavaScript ecosystem, the chances are good they're using Node. In the span of a little more than a decade, Node.js has become the single most common technology used in professional web development.
