Okay, I've been searching to find out which one is the best between Angularjs and jQuery mobile for creating hybrid apps. specifically, an eCommerce type of app. so there won't be much animation as such apart from page transitions etc which i think both Angularjs and jQuery mobile are capable of page transitions mobile style.
I know this question has been asked before but there has been many changes to both Angularjs and jquery mobile since the last questions so I was wondering what the pros and cons are for noth.
I'm more inclined towards jquery mobile as it seems to be easier to use and also because I have never used angularjs before... but i'm willing to go towards angularjs if my app would benefit from it and if not then I can carry on with jquery mobile?
any advise would be appreciated.
Well it depends on the time constraint of the project. If you have enough time to learn AngularJS then you can do have AngularJS.
Both of the framework are good, but as a co-developer I would follow the best practices in development which is MVC framework which is AngularJS offered.
So Ive been learning HTML5 and javascript(including all the other stuff that goes with these two), and now my managers at my internship are asking me to use Sencha Touch 2. What I have found is that everything I have learned is almost irrelevant. I feel like the way things are done in Sencha Touch 2 are almost completely different from web development using html5/javascript...the only thing common is a tad bit of html and css. Am i correct or am i wrong? I feel like unsatisfied knowing i spent the last few weeks getting bettter at javascript/html5 to learn that it is not useful for sencha touch 2. I have not dwelled to deep yet into Sencha Touch, but that is how i feel so far
It looks like most of the Sencha controls/widgets are configured using javascript code, and that the whole framework is built upon javascript. I wouldnt say that javascript is not usefull, quite the opposite. But you will probably feel that you are using the framework itself more that pure javascript.
It is the same with JQuery. It is basically just a framework built in and for javascript, but using it might feel like something else entirely.
One thing that is good to remember is that the better you know the language, the easier it will be to learn and to use the framework that utilizes it. And invariably you will have to knit the framework into webpages or applications, so you will have to use javascript and HTML5 for that as well.
Specifically, I'm looking at the recently released qMobi and wondered if anyone has had any luck getting JavascriptMVC to work with it.
I'm assuming Zepto doesn't work with it?
Has anyone tried either?
For context, I'm currently creating mobile (and mobile web) apps using Backbone + Zepto but I like JMVC's build environment and built-in testing tools. I'm not however, a big fan of being tied in to jQuery which IMHO is a little too heavyweight for mobile web app development.
I think JavaScriptMVC is modular enough to use its ecosystem (StealJS, FuncUnit, ...) in your building process without using jQueryMX. The building system will depend on jQuery, but the released application will not.
As has been said, you could leave out jQueryMX and just use steal, etc. to build test and document, but that's kind of like buying a car without an engine.
In theory, it's possible that another library with a jQuery compatible syntax could drive jQueryMX. Try replacing jquery/jquery.js with qMobi and see if it works. I'm guessing that it wont though. The controllers in particular leverage jQuery pretty heavily, and most plugins are going to assume it's the real jQuery.
I have some experience in SL/WPF. I always wanted to learn how to create nice looking JavaScript web apps that would be relatively easy to implement. Are there any JavaScript libraries that would offer nice view/viewlogic separation (MVVM?) as well as potentially a decent set of controls?
Could you recommend anything?
You might want to try http://knockoutjs.com/
It's a binding framework that will enable MVVM in JavaScript.
Everyone should be aware of jQuery. It has become fundamental for browser development. The jQuery UI plug-in is worth a look.
I have some experience in AJAX development, mostly on .NET and MooTools. However, I want to learn more and see what others out there thought about the various other options available. I am looking more for advice about the front end. The back end, I will most probably be coding it in .NET using c# and WCF services.
Please feel free to provide me as much information as you can. Also, I would appreciate any links to resources.
List of Options (feel free to add)
Write my own Javascript
Use a framework like MooTools, JQuery, etc. Which one is better?
Use Google Web Toolkit. Am I tying myself to the limitations of GWT? Or are there not limitations?
ASP.NET AJAX
WPF (Will this run on non-IE browsers?)
Flash (it'll be a pain to learn action script)
Thanks
Jaspreet
Writing your own Javascript often means reinventing the wheel when it comes to trying to attain cross-browser compatibility. Frameworks such as jQuery and MooTools take care of much of that grunt work for you.
Personally, I would suggest picking a Javascript framework or using GWT, but really it's just a matter of personal preference at that point, much like choosing a programming language. Pick that one that is best for your purposes, or that you're most familiar with.
I'd go with jQuery.
jQuery will be bundled with the next version of Visual Studio. Google uses jQuery. jQuery has the largest user-base of any of the frameworks out there.. And speaking of not re-inventing the wheel: jQuery also has the largest plugin-repository of any of the frameworks out there.. Including its own official UI library which is in constant development.
.. And if you're a fan of books; there's 3-4 books about the framework out currently.
Oh, yeah! Check out Douglas Crockford's website for great vanilla JavaScript tips and tricks.
Just my two cents :)
jQuery
prototype
MooTools
dojo
GWT
ExtJS
Those will all have you working with very solid code, which is usually the best way to improve your own skills. And don't forget all their extensions/plugins.
I would recommend jQuery. It's more extensible and light-weight than most other JavaScript libraries I've seen (and you can have it Google-cached with the AJAX APIs).
For Flash-based AJAX web apps, Flex is a better solution.
Since this is a fairly subjective question I will put in my 2 cents.
I've developed using the Dojo toolkit and found it very well rounded. However, if you don't do a custom build on your library it slows everything down. It has a steeper learning curve than other frameworks, but seems to sit pretty close to heart of Javascript.
But this isn't an advertisement for dojo. I'm working on a Ajax web app currently and my goal is to try and avoid using a framework. Why? A few reasons.
The biggest reason is complete control over the code. Not that I don't trust toolkits, I just like my custom code. I don't have any code that I don't use, and all of my abstractions are custom made for my purposes. At times I am in fact reinventing the wheel*, but its always a bit different because it's purpose built.
The other big reason is the amount of knowledge I gain. I'm confident that I could pick up any framework much faster, because of not using one for a project. I understand so much more than I did previously. Before It was more like a voodoo mystery box, and now even frameworks make more sense to me.
The fact of the matter is if you do any non-trivial javascript you will end up with a framework (or a mess). In reality it may not be the fastest way to write web apps, but it isn't all that hard with a little practice. You can be amazed at what creative things you can come up with that didn't exist before.
*Reinventing the wheel is a terrible analogy that we all use. We reinvent wheels all the time. First made of stone, then lighter wood, tires, etc... My truck doesn't have the same wheels as my sedan.
Like other responders I prefer to use frameworks, but my favorite is dojo -- clean and well-designed architecture, good books (my favorite being Matthew Russel's), and a particularly impressive approach to using browser extensions (such as Google Gears or Microsoft Silverlight) if the user has them installed, while falling back gracefully (e.g. to Ajax-interfaced server-side storage) if no suitable browser extensions (or sufficiently advanced browsers, with HTML5 support) are present.
Dojo is, currently, slightly less popular than jquery (e.g., [jquery ajax] has 8.4 million hits on Google Search, vs 4.3 million for [dojo ajax]), but that's still way popular enough to ensure it won't go away any time soon;-).
You must check ExtJS.
Most libraries I've seen have usable core but lack the widget/control library that will blend-in with each other. Sure you can get a vast number of controls for jQuery, but do you have the time to find out which ones have intended functionality and tweak their visual appearance to match the rest of controls? ExtJS gives you just that. Core is core. It works and it works great. But the vast selection of compatible and functionality rich controls is the main driver that will make your life easier.
I've used ExtJS with Asp.Net and WCF services and it was a really nice experience overall. You will need some time to get to know ExtJS component model to extend it even further (as you would need to do the same with other libs), but when you do, you start loving it even more.
One more thing: since MS ships jQuery with MVC it doesn't mean it's the best. It only means it's one of the best (and much better than Microsoft's in-house Ajax) but with the most relaxed open source license.
Edit: Now that Silverlight 3 has shipped it became apparent it will shake things a bit with its offline support and rich graphics support. As well as standalone desktop like web apps. Definitely something to consider...
Please note that WPF has nothing to do with ajax.
AJAX = Asynchronous javascript and xml
WPF = a windows-only UI display technology. The only option there for in-browser use is to create an Xbap. The more-suited-for-the-web counterpart is silverlight (say, like flash but from microsoft), so perhaps you should look into that as well... it's like using flash, but with familiar MS technologies.
Concerning your question about which framework to use in case of ajax: I prefer jQuery. It's short syntax and chaining allow you to reach your goals very fast in an intuitive way.
Also, GWT is a Java framework that also renders stuff on the client, as far as i know. So you would have the limitation of Java as backend language...
GWT has made considerable leaps and bounds over the past 7 months. The mutiple GWT widget libraries have received a good deal of attention, and Google's work on the library has been impressive. Going GWT limits you to:
Using GWT widgets
Possibly becoming a GWT widget developer
The benefits include:
Coding in Java
Debugging in Java
Skipping the parts of JavaScript that make you pull your hair out
GWT is the step past AJAX. It buries the HTML / JavaScript so that you don't need to deal with it, but also provides access in case you do want to deal with it.
Overall, you will spend less time trying to get small things working, and more time adding awesome to your application.
there is also prototype.js
Try the Yahoo! User Interface Library (YUI)
Pick a library to learn, then pick up the others--but I don't think I'd reinvent the wheel.
I picked MooTools and have picked up jQuery/Prototype since. (Picked Mootools because their site, at the time, was the only one that validated, figured clean html meant clean javascript).
Side note about MooTools:
An often overlooked feature of MooTools is the download builder. You can download just enough of the framework source to get your AJAX working, and nothing else.
There's the BBC's open source javascript library called Glow