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====== On the Radar ======

**Contact Hour 28?**: To be discussed on Friday 27th April, 2013.

**Lecturer**: [[C.P.Jobling@Swansea.ac.uk|Dr Chris P. Jobling]].

**Abstract**

Interesting developments in Web Applications Technology or //What Might Be Good to Have on Your CV// in a year or two's time. Use your favourite search engine to find out more.


===== On the Radar =====

  * Client Side
    * Structural Layer
    * Presentation Layer
    * Behavioural Layer
  * Server-Side
  * Database layer
  * Development Best-Practices
  * How do I know?

===== Client-Side: Structural Layer =====

  * HTML5 of course!
  * HAML

===== Client-Side: Presentational Layer =====

  * CSS3
  * HTML5 boilerplate -- some HTML5 but a lot of CSS best practices too
  * Grid-based fluid layout frameworks
  * Responsive Web Design
  * Mobile-first design
  * Media queries
  * SASS and LESS

===== Client-Side: Behavioural Layer =====

  * New HTML5 JavaScript APIs and browser capabilities
  * Modernizr and polyfills
  * jQuery library
  * Backbone.js

===== Client-Side: New Languages =====

These two compile to JavaScript:

   * Coffeescript -> built-in to Rails
   * Dart -> being developed by Google by and for their own web app developers
===== Client-Side: MVC Frameworks =====

//Hundreds// of them! Aside from Backbone.js, the ones I think are worth deeper study are: 

  * Angular.js 
  * Ember.js
  * Spine.js
  * Knockout.js
  * Meteor.js

Keep an eye on TodoMVC for more and examples of their use.

===== Server-Side =====

  * Other Programming Languages
  * Important frameworks that you'll meet next year
  * Other Mainstream Web Development Frameworks
  * Interesting niche frameworks
  * Apps vs Web Apps

===== Server Side: Other Programming Languages =====

  * PHP
  * Java
  * Python
  * C#
  * Perl
  * //JavaScript//!
===== Server Side: Important frameworks that you'll meet next year =====

Very popular in so-called //enterprise// applications and intranet developments:
  * Java: Servlets, JSP, JSF, Java Web Services, Spring, ... //Internet Computing//
  * Microsoft .NET: C#, ASP.NET, ... //Building Reliable Web Applications//
===== Server Side: Other Mainstream Web Development Frameworks =====

  * Ruby on Rails -- Ruby
  * Django -- Python
  * Cake, Laravel -- PHP
  * Node.js -- JavaScript
  * Spring -- Java
  * ...
===== Server Side: Interesting niche frameworks =====

  * Dart -> compiles to "//JavaScript for the modern browser//", but it's server-side too!
  * Google Web Toolkit (GWT) -> Java to HTML/JavaScript
  * Google App Engine -> Python and Java
  * Sinatra -> Ruby
  * Express.js -> JavaScript + Node.js + //the Client-side MVC framework of your choice//
  * Meteor -> JavaScript + Node.js
===== Mobile and Other Form Factors =====

   * Smart phones
   * Tablets
   * Surfaces
   * TVs
   * Gaming consoles

===== Apps vs Web Apps =====

  * Web Apps: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, Location Services, Local Storage, Canvas, ... all devices!
  * iOS: Mac only development tools XCode, Objective-C and Cocoa target iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, distribution by App Store only.
  * Android: Java so cross platform development. Main problem -> fragmentation of platform.

===== Database layer =====

Complex data models with lots of relationships require complex and time/space consuming join queries. 

Rise of the so-called No SQL alternatives:

  * redis 
  * MongoDB
  * CouchDB
===== Development Best-Practices =====

Many of the most widely used tools and techniques have come from the Open Source Community and Agile Development.

  * Version control - almost standardized on Git but some major projects use CVS, SVN, Mercury, Bazaar
  * Development communities - GitHub, SourceForge, Google Code
  * Behavioural and Test Driven Development - Unit testing, executable specifications (e.g. RSpec), acceptance testing (e.g. Cucumber), continuous integration
===== How do I know? =====

   * I follow the RSS feeds lots of development sites
   * I read influential on-line journals
   * I Watch selected videos on YouTube and other video sharing sites
   * I listen to technical development podcasts
   * I have Google+, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts
   * I occasionally blog
   * I am signed up to Code Year, Code School and Nettuts+
   * I set myself development projects in a technology I need to learn
   * I teach so I have to continuously learn!

You should do some or all of these too!

===== Good Sources =====

  * The ChangeLog blog and podcasts -- "open source moves fast, keep up!"
  * RailsCasts and similar
  * A List Apart
  * HTML5 Doctor and HTML5 Rocks
  * Google TechTalks and Google I/O conference sessions on YouTube
  * YUI Theatre
  * BBC Click (TV iPlayer and radio Podcast)
  * The Guardian Tech weekly podcast


===== Summary of this Session =====

  * Client Side
    * Structural Layer
    * Presentation Layer
    * Behavioural Layer
  * Server-Side
  * Database layer
  * Development Best-Practices
  * How do I know?

===== The End =====

Thanks for Watching!

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