Before the launch of the IT project, there are many planning and decision-making processes ahead. The planning phase is critical and can have a significant impact on the future of the project. Choosing the right framework can affect development time, cost, software quality, as well as scalability. That is why it’s so important to make the right decision, even if you have to spend more time analyzing all the advantages and disadvantages of the available solutions. In this article, we will review the importance of selecting the best framework, and in addition, we will look at the available options, their advantages, and disadvantages, and try to pick a suitable one for a particular case. Besides, we would like to encourage you to read the article on the best framework for web development in 2022 available by the link.
Why Use a Right Framework in Software Development?
A framework is a software product that makes the development and maintaining of technically complex projects quite easy. As a rule, it includes only standard software modules, while all the project-related elements are developed by the team. Thus, the team of developers can achieve high development speed, as well as better performance and safety of the software. So, the key benefits of choosing this option are:
Cost-efficiency and Viability
Any businessman will be happy to hear that framework-based development is often more cost-efficient and productive than comprehensive individual scripting. The second approach is good only in two cases – either the idea is easy to implement and further development is not required, or, on the contrary, it is so complicated that it needs very complex optimization. In any other situation, give your preference to frameworks because they are quicker and better.
Technical Advantages
Among the key pros of using a framework is that it provides a typical structure for applications. Therefore, framework-based applications are convenient for further maintenance and modification, since the standardized structure of the elements is clear to all developers, and it does not require much time to study architecture.
Functional Capabilities
Web framework ecosystems are also rich in ready-made solutions with various functionality. Developers do not need to invent anything at the very beginning when working on typical tasks, as they may apply the solutions already offered by the community. This not only saves limited resources but also brings better results.
Why a Right Framework is Not a Library
Libraries are a simpler element of software architecture. Such a library can be used just like a group of subsystems of typical functionality, without affecting the composition of the project and prescribing something.
The framework gives the IT specialist the required functionality and dictates the terms for developing the app structure. At the initial stage, it sets the default behavior, forming a framework that will need to be expanded and changed according to the determined logic. Frameworks may also contain utility software, scripting languages, code libraries, and other components, which facilitate the creation and integration of different elements of the whole project.
Comparison with Alternatives
From a technical side, any functionality can be implemented either on a CMS, on a framework, or in a programming language. However, some projects are faster to develop on a CMS, some on a framework, while non-platform scripting is rarely a smart business decision. The selection of the method should be foremost based on economic criteria. Each of the approaches has its advantages and disadvantages, below we will consider the pros and cons of developing on the basis of frameworks.
Pros
- This method lets you achieve simple project maintenance.
- You can simply implement any business ideas alternative to those that were an original offer of the system. Also, framework-based projects are easily scalable.
- Frameworks are usually quicker and more load-bearing than CMS. This is the reason why numerous notorious web stores do not work on CMS but select a framework. As for safety, frameworks surpass the individually scripted apps and are equivalent to CMS (experts agree that websites based on the framework are more secure).
Cons
- The terms for developing a typical app on frameworks are extended compared to using CMS. They include only the standard elements of the application-level business logic. So, many features get the individual implementation.
- Framework development requires a proper understanding of the business tasks that should be implemented. For instance, if the CMS already has some pre-installed order processing mechanism, then the frameworks do not provide this.
Right Framework Selection
Selecting the best framework is one of the most important steps in making your web project successful. While determining which framework is best for your software, the project features matter more than your personal preferences. In order to have adequate expectations when you start writing code, it is worth briefly familiarizing yourself with the main characteristics of the particular framework in advance. The best way to feel a framework is to use it in a small project. This will give you the opportunity to solve daily problems with the help of this framework. As you work on a project, give yourself some time to reflect on how productive the work is:
- Is the achievement of results easy?
- Do you have to use external libraries?
- Do you need any plugins?
- Are there convenient guides regarding this framework?
At this stage, you are collecting your basic experience, so you can imagine how this framework will be used in future projects. Last but not least, you should consider the ease of use. No matter how functional the framework is, there are still chances to run into a problem that will require additional tools to solve. There are many libraries that focus on solving certain tasks like data manipulation, time formatting, text editing, etc. If it takes a lot of time connecting one of them, then probably this is still not the best choice.