Top 7 Full Stack Development Trends to Follow
App development has already become an indomitable component of enterprise success. But to stay ahead with their apps, businesses are exploring future-ready technologies more than ever. Several prolific technologies have emerged to transform front-end and back-end development in recent years.
Successful full-stack developer skills consist of front-end and back-end development skills. Full stack development has become popular as businesses for their software development projects can reduce the team size when one full stack developer can take care of both front-end and back-end. But with emerging technologies, full-stack development is rapidly transforming. Here we are going to shed some light on these full-stack development trends. But we will start from the basics.
What Exactly is Full-Stack Development?
Full-stack development refers to the all-around skills covering front-end or client-side and back-end or server-side development. An app development stack consists of four key components front-end or user interface, a database, a back-end for server and API configuration, and a middleware for connecting the database layer with the back-end. A full-stack developer is skilled in all these technologies and can build an entire app from start to finish.
By taking care of all the skills required for developing an app, they help reduce the team size as a couple of full-stack developers can build an entire app from scratch without needing specialists for the front-end and back end. This ultimately will result in a great cost advantage and a faster development cycle.
Now let us explain some of the most popular full-stack development trends for the years to come.
Progressive Web Apps (PWA)
The progressive web application (PWA) brought something unique to the table. They are equally websites accessible through browsers as usual and mobile apps accessible just by a tap on the Home Screen. As for development, PWAs are web applications built with tried and trusted web languages such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
But PWAs are lightweight and, with local caching technology, can load instantly when the device goes offline. They are also built in a way so that accessing platform-specific and device features becomes hugely more accessible. Simply put, they take the so-called mobile browsing experience to the level of native apps.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI is a new technology trend that front-end developers must work on with utmost seriousness, as an overwhelming number of enterprise apps rely on AI to shape their user experience attributes. For example, AI chatbots have already become a common feature for many apps that want to use their apps to serve customers better.
The emergence of conversational AI, thanks to the latest natural language data models such as GPT-3, Dalle-E, and several other frameworks, has already forced many app-based customer services and business activities to turn attention to AI chatbots. Data visualization, deep learning models, and computer vision technology will also be future growth hackers for app projects.
Emerging Shifts in Programming Language Skills
Full-stack developers have many programming languages to leverage commands on their server-side or client-side development. But as the developing world is getting competitive, having a command of one language is not enough anymore. Leading full-stack developers are now updating their skills with new languages and frameworks.
Among the cross-platform development frameworks, Flutter, coupled with Google Firebase back-end, is now offering a full stack development option covering web, desktop, ios, and android platforms. Among the JavaScript frameworks, NodeJS has emerged as a versatile technology for both front-end and back-end development. Both MEAN and MERN stacks are going strong in market demand. Python coupled with Django is getting popular for many app niches such as Fintech, educational apps, AI chatbot apps, etc.
Low-Code Approach to Development
Coding less is the new in-thing for full-stack development, and several platforms allow today’s developers to build an app with only a few lines of code. The popularity of low-code development is imminent as businesses find this approach easier for maintenance and versatility.
The no-code app development platforms allowing enthusiasts t9 build an app by using ready-to-use building blocks or components is another approach that is also trending for some time now. While the no-code approach still looks amateurish, the low-code approach is already popular and will only gain momentum in the years to come.
Internet of Things (IoT)
Since the connected reality of devices and apps all around us pushed by the Internet of Things (IoT) is experiencing exponential growth, it is bound to impact front-end development. Since modern apps are required to handle multiple sensors and device touchpoints, IoT has emerged as a massive reality for development projects.
A full-stack developer with IoT knowledge and experience can help establish a connection and syncing among different OS systems and use various front-end technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript frameworks coupled with server-side technologies like Python, Java, and PHP.
Blockchain-Based Features
As a decentralized database technology, Blockchain has revolutionized many sectors, including finance, banking, and many others. Any app is wanting to secure and make things easier for users to transact through mobile prefers Blockchain. Offering a transparent, speedy, and fully tamper-proof ledger system, Blockchain brings ultimate security and transparency.
Full stack developers working on Fintech and other transaction-savvy app niches such as mobile commerce will find Blockchain a key technology. Blockchain, also through cryptographic tokens, allows apps to implement strict authentication and authorization measures.
Wrapping Up
Irrespective of the niche, all full-stack developers should watch these emerging development trends and technologies that will shape the digital transformation in the coming years. With a little effort and focus, a full-stack developer trained in traditional skills can further build up new programming and technology skills to remain in sync with these trends.
Since full-stack development will not wane in popularity anytime soon, what matters is how they update their skills alongside the fast-changing industry trends.