Continuing with our collection of common programs at the end of the month, we will make an enumeration of some open source frameworks. In the software development industry, a framework is a set of resources that makes it possible to reduce and facilitate software development time.
Software development is a very demanding activity in terms of time, knowledge and money. Any shortcut that can be taken is very useful.
Some open source frameworks
There are two resources that programmers can turn to to reduce development time, one is libraries and the other is frameworks. Let's take an example to understand the difference. Suppose we want to assemble a car. We can buy the parts separately (Wheels, engine, steering wheel, windshield, gas tank) or we can buy a car and make the modifications we want, such as changing the color, modifying the engine to run faster or adding a roof rack. to carry more luggage.
The bookcases are the pieces. Code designed for specific functions such as executing mathematical calculations or printing text. Frameworks are complete programs or templates that we can modify to achieve the desired result.
Framework types
Frameworks for designing websites and web applications
Sorry for the obvious, but it is used for the creation of websites or applications based on web technologies. Some open source titles are:
- Angular: Developed by Google uses the TypeScript programming language (An improved version of JavaScript) and is ideal for creating a single page web application.
- Django: This framework It allows you to use the popular Python programming language to create websites such as content managers or shopping carts.
- Ruby on Rails: It's used for creating server-side applications and is ideal for database work.
- Bootstrap: the best known of the frameworks focused on the appearance of the website. It includes a number of components, layouts, and color schemes that can be combined to achieve professional-quality designs. It can be used both installed on our own server or by adding a link to the project's server.
- Mashed potato: If you prefer simple designs, this framework It is minimalist, although it includes options such as menus, buttons, columns and forms.
Frameworks for web application design
As this article was written in collaboration with Captain Obvious, I am forced to clarify that this type of frameworks is used for the creation of mobile applications.
Some open source titles are:
- Flutter;: The second Google's contribution to this list. It allows you to create apps for Android and iOS using the same code base. It includes widgets, a rendering engine and integration with APIs to create a native user experience.
- Ionic: Result from the combination of two big ones, PhoneGap and Angular. Ionic makes it easy to build iOS and Android apps by adding things like filters, forms, views, navigation menus, and action sheets.
- Framework7: I must confess that I did not know this framework that allows you to create both web and desktop applications using HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3. It includes elements for creating user interfaces such as action sheets, list view, popup window, side panels, layout grid, among others.
- Onsen UI: This framework It is suitable for creating complex web applications that work on different platforms as if they were native. It is compatible with similar frameworks and its website has a comprehensive learning material. Components for building applications include components such as tabs, lists, and the navigation stack.
These are just a few examples of the variety of offerings that open source provides us with. Of course, the list is not exhausted and we will continue to expand it.
Time will tell what impact Artificial Intelligence tools will have on the use of frameworks, however, applications written using these tools are still a long way from producing code of the same quality as code created by humans.