A few months back, Technical Master shared basic information about Angular including its beginnings and many benefits. It has been helping software developers and engineers since 2009, and it’s used for building static or dynamic websites and mobile apps. At the time of writing, the framework is in Version 14, which was released in June 2022.
It’s a platform that remains popular because it has become an integral part of app development ecosystems. Google – which developed the tool – continues to improve it, not to mention the fact that it’s supported by other major players in the industry like Oracle and Microsoft as well. Then there are its notable ‘out of the box’ features like cross-browser Shadow DOM document model and HTTP support. Considering all of the above, it’s no wonder Angular became the tool of choice for over 60% of software engineers today.
To help you prepare for your first project using Angular, here are some important things to consider:
Application Structure
Before you or your team dives into the coding aspect, thoroughly define the design structure of your application. Consider the type of dependency injection, how smart components will be used, and your chosen folder structure. Decide on a coding style as well for things like symbol names, variable values, and separators.
Required Tools
As with most tools for building an app, other components are necessary to be able to use this framework properly. A post on Medium discussing Angular identifies NodeJS and npm as the two fundamental assets that you need to install on the device to be used for the project. If you already have these, check their versions by opening a terminal window and using the console commands “node -v” and “npm -v” (without quotes). Ensure that you have at least Node 10 and npm 6.
Software Architecture
You can either choose the client-server setup or go serverless for your software architecture. A feature on MongoDB and Angular states that the former entails using the MEAN stack (MongoDB, Express, Angular, and Node.js) with Angular on the client side, while Node and Express make up the server side. For the serverless option, a third-party cloud platform manages server elements. An example category is Function-as-a-Service (FaaS), which allows you to deploy functions to the cloud platform and call them via your Angular app.
Using TypeScript
Angular uses the JavaScript (JS) superset called TypeScript, which is a statically-typed language. It implements compile-time variable types, whereas JS uses run-time. This means that TypeScript has all the advantages of JS along with the bonus of a type system. Other benefits include the features of ES6 and ES7, as well as support for classes, modules, and JS packaging.
If you are using JS, you need to convert it to TypeScript or perform a migration. It’s recommended to do this in phases to allow for QA.
Angular CLI
When building an app on Angular, you don’t have to manually generate folders and files. It has the Angular CLI (command line interface) for creating components and modules. This feature covers the end-to-end process from configuration to testing. It uses Webpack and TypeScript for module management, while Karma and Protractor are used for testing.
Use the command “npm install -g @angular/cli” to install Angular CLI. Be sure to update it to the latest version.
Lazy Loading
Simplifying Technologies recommends using lazy loading on some of your modules so your application will have optimal loading times. If all your modules are configured to load immediately, your app may take up to a minute or more to start depending on its size.
Leave eager loading to feature and core modules that are required for app startup and main interface initialization. You can check the Angular lazy loading guide for the basics of this process.
To sum everything up, keep in mind that Angular has external (e.g. third-party components) and internal (e.g. programming language used) considerations. Be sure to cover both aspects so you can build your app as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
If your project is for mobile, you may also check out our post on ‘How You Can Create a Popular Mobile App in 2022’ for helpful advice.
