Must Know Skills: Backend Developer

The backend is the part of a web application that is unrevealed to the user. Unlike front-end, back-end development operations are not very easy and usually turn out to be complicated and manifold; this part is in alignment with the server. Backend operations are a lot different that are controlled by different programming languages like C, C++, Perl, and Ruby. It is a broad field that’s further subcategorized into several levels.

A backend developer usually doesn’t work alone; backend developers usually work in teams of 2 or more people. A team of backend developers contains different specialists that are responsible for their specific discipline. Some are responsible for database management, some work with caching schemes and scripting while some focus on website architecture. Behind every successful website and application, the combined effort of the whole team plays its role. A backend developer’s code bridges the communication between database and browser.

To describe the working of a backend developer in a nutshell, we can say that such a developer mainly focuses on the following:

  • Web Development Languages
  • Database and Cache
  • Server
  • API (REST & SOAP)

The essential requirement for becoming a backend developer is to have a keen knowledge of at least one server-side programming language.

What is the role of a backend developer?

Front-End Web Developer Job Description Template | Toptal®

To understand the skills required to become a backend developer, one needs to analyze what are their responsibilities. Only then we can relate their skills to their roles and responsibilities. The key responsibilities of backend developers are:

  • They work with front-end developers and provide server-side algorithms of user-facing web application elements. Backend developers code in server-side language to create logic so that web applications function correctly.
  • Other than coding and creating functional web applications, backend developers also optimize them for increasing response time and efficiency.
  • They analyze the goals and requirements, handle bugs and errors, and come up with solutions.
  • They also interact with the database for storing data and ensure that every user has access to what they search.
  • They also manage APIs that are executed across the devices.
  • They are also involved in building the architecture of the system.

Backend Developer Skills

To have efficient backend developer skills, one needs to have complete command on the subject. A good developer is aware of every new trend and invention in his domain. He urges to learn and align with all advancements coming his way.

Technology progresses every day. Many innovations are being made, and adapting to modern techniques is imperative to sustaining the game. Luckily in the development domain, a new trend might be complicated in learning, but it is focused on reducing the coding effort. Every new language aims to have minimal syntax, and it is suitable for a developer to invest some time to learn it.

The necessary technical skills required to become a backend developer are:

  • In-depth knowledge of at least one backend programming language and framework.
  • Knowledge of front-end technologies, such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, so that he can communicate with the front-end team.
  • He should be capable of managing a hosting environment along with the database administration.
  • He should be capable of scaling applications to handle the load changes.
  • He should have enough knowledge of accessibility and security compliance.
  • It’s good for him to have an experience of version control, such as GIT.
  • A backend developer is not expected to have command on every programming language. That is not possible for a human to have expertise in each of them. But they are expected to be experts in their opted language.

 

More Backend Developer Skills to add on the resume

1. Web Development Languages: Back-end developers work simultaneously with front-end developers, setting server rationale to outside components of the web application. So as to execute this rationale, the backend engineer utilizes server-side scripting language. The best programming languages that you must know while talking about backend developer skills are:

  • Ruby: Ruby is a programming language that is utilized accompanied by Rails. Ruby is to Rails as PHP is to Zend, or as Python is to Django. The sheer class and finesse of the language are what attract the back-end developers towards this language and make it a must-have in your tech stack. It prioritizes conventions rather than configuration, which helps the back-end developers as they don’t have to waste their precious development time in configuring the files to start the development process.
  • Python: Curated by Guido van Rossum and rolled-out in 1991, Python is an interpreted, cutting-edge, general-purpose programming language. It reduces the need of coding to a very significant level and has high utility because of the presence of third-party modules. The ease of use and extensive libraries offer back-end developers more productivity as compared to other programming languages. Not just for building basic applications like desktop apps, Oss, Business Apps, and web frameworks, but Python is also the best fit for AI and ML-based web development.
  • PHP: PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) is an open-source back-end scripting language used by developers to build web apps and sites. PHP also has a huge assortment of utilitarian modules and a couple of the modules accessible in PHP incorporate Graphics and PDF, among others. One of the greatest advantages of PHP is that it is very easy to learn and use because of its simple syntax. Anyone who is familiar with C language can easily grasp PHP without any difficulty.
  • Java: Java is an object-oriented, platform-independent, general-purpose programming language that is designed to have negligible implementation reliance. As a result of Java’s power, convenience, cross-stage capacities, and security highlights, it has become the most preferred language among developers.

2. Comprehensive Knowledge of Databases: Become familiar at stacking and recovering data from databases. Though front end developers can associate with databases and interface with them too, server-side development is right now the standard method to control advantaged and extraordinary access to that information, including storage and recovery. Start with great social style databases, and move towards chart databases as your knowledge permits.

3. Connecting to Application Programme Interface (API): Internet browsers aren’t the only entity to interact with web applications. Regularly, an organization will offer a mobile app for iOS or Android alongside its principal site. There are additionally program based applications that principally utilize JavaScript, not server-side rendered HTML (through structures like React, Vue, or Angular). To recover information for the display, these applications require an Application Programmer Interface, or API to associate with.

HTML might be helpful for designing substance in internet browsers, however, there are greatly improved configurations for information that will be utilized by different projects. The two most mainstream positions for API information are JSON, which represents JavaScript Object Notation, and XML, which represents eXtensible Markup Language.

4. Server Handling: Your site needs a database to deal with all the client and product data. A database stores site content in a structure that makes it simple to recover, arrange, alter, and store information. It runs on a remote PC called a server. There is a wide range of databases that are generally utilized, for example, MySQL, Oracle, Postgres SQL, and SQL Server. For server management you can choose any one of these and acquire an expertise on it: Docker, Kubernetes, Nginx, Node.js, New Relic etc.

5. Knowledge of Popular Frameworks: You must have knowledge of the frameworks identified with your preferred language. For example, on the off chance that you go with Java, you would be required to know Spring, Hibernate, and so on. These are well known Java-based frameworks. Additionally, on the off chance that you go for Python, you would be required to know Flask, Django or some other Python-based framework.

Estimated income of a Backend Developer

 

According to research, and taking the previous year’s figures into consideration, backend developer trends to earn up to $120,798 per year. This figure could vary based on expertise, experience, skills, and is also dependent on the company, country, and other factors. Also, it is worthwhile to note that there’s a vast difference between the pay-scales of backend developers and front-end developers. Front-end developers aren’t paid as much as backend developers. The reason is that front-end work is mostly done with the help of automated tools, while backend development requires much technical expertise.

What is the future of Backend Development?

 

As of the current market trends, there are no worthy alternatives to backend developers and backend development. So naturally, the future is very bright for such developers. In this digital age, every business is required to have an online presence, and for that, they require high-quality backend development for their websites. Although many clients are not aware of the difference between backend and front-end still, the market cannot survive without backend developers. Despite technology replacing everything with automation, backend developers have a safe future as they are required for the process of developing automated tools.

Summary

The role of backend developers is critical to web development. They are responsible for all the key roles and ensure the deployment of quality products. That is why more and more aspiring web developers are today opting for this career. Such people should have a passion for coding and possess all the required knowledge and skills to become an efficient developer. It is also necessary to have other additional skills, mentioned above, to make your mark in the market.

Kick-starting Amazon SES

We have been using Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) as the deployment platform for a client. EC2 is part of the Amazon AWS cloud computing platform.We have problems sending bulk email notifications using Gmail for this particular application. Gmail has restrictions on bulk emailing, and as far as I know, Google does not support emails in bulk, as of now. Google prefers to use Google Groups for bulk emailing.

Anyway, since we were already on AWS and SES was made available this year, we decided to use it.

New – Receive and Process Incoming Email with Amazon SES | AWS News Blog

I’ve been reading through the ‘Getting Started’ and other Development Related Documents, available here .

The basichigh level with SES are:

Signing up for SES. An existing AWS subscriber already has SES enabled.
Registering the email ids from which we want to send emails. This is basically similar to an email verification process. I believe one can register / verify up to 100 email addresses.
Test sending emails. Amazon provides a set of Perl scripts for testing the API from the command line. And it provides SDKs for Java, .Net, Python, Ruby, etc.,.
Applying for production access. Before getting production access is a 2,000 emails per day limit during the testing phase.is
Pricing – It costs $ 0.10 per 1,000 emails, but the first 2,000 emails for an EC2 customer are free. Data or bandwidth cost is separate, which starts at $ 0.12 per 1 GB for the first 10 GBs, and then gradually decreases the GB of use. More details available here .

Sending Limits – 10,000 emails per day. I’m sending emails sent. There are not many bounces or complaints on the emails sent. More details here .

The sending limit can go up to 1,000,000 emails per day. In case of over 1000,000 emails per day, they can contact AWS support directly and present their case. AWS may increase the limits for dry customers.

Sending Rate – Starts at 1 email per second and goes up to 90 emails per second, again.

Usage Statistics – You can not buy statistics from the Amazon other than period. The statistics can be retrieved using the web-based SES dashboard.

AWS.Net SDK – We are using SES from a .Net based app, and integrating the SDK provided by Amazon was quite painless. Code samples are also available on the .a.netbased app, and integrating the SDK provided by Amazon was quite painless. Code samples are also available onthe .Net SDK website

An interesting undocumented feature of the AWS. Net. SDK is, for example, log4net. Log4net for logging on. And it can also be logged on with the new logger named ‘Amazon’. Although, some people have had a more pluggable logging, where one could have a plugged-in a different logging library.AWS.Net SDK is, for example, log4net for log in. Log4net for logging on. And it can also be logged on with the new logger named ‘Amazon’. Although, some people have had a more pluggable logging, where one could have a plugged-in a different logging library.

Trouble-shooting – Amazon SES has been around for the web. The AWS forums is also a good starting point. Most of the issues faced solved on the forums.

Email Authentication – Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and Sender Email authentication mechanisms can easily be used with SES. These mechanisms basically invoked the DNS TXT record which specifies ‘amazonses.com’ as a sending domain. Amazon recommends setting up these records as a minimum.

For those who need to implement DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) authentication, it is not offered by the DKIM specification.

So, that was a brief introduction to Amazon SES. Hopefully, it will save some time for SES.

AWS has been transformed into the dotcom era, are now finally coming true.cloud based offerings, looks like the promises made on “Cloud computing” in the dotcom era, are now finally coming true.

Designing with Code

It is an old saying- “A picture speaks a thousand words”. But not everyone can understand that language. So to make a design understandable we use code for designing.Code takes the design more near to the real product functionally/behaviorally. As in terms of professional language for a customer-“Interface is the product”. So the interface need to be interactive. And for a better interactivity a designer should design a functional layout. And to make those functional layouts functioning we use code, combination of -Markup language(HTML, XML etc.), Styling language(CSS, LESS, SASS), Scripting language(Javascript, jQuery, AJAX etc.).Should designers code or developers design? | by Anna Arteeva | The Startup | Medium

There are lots of experiments, inventions that are done to give more life to designs, the mockups are now no longer used or are not enough to satisfy the customer to sell a product. No matter how much strength you put to design a beautiful template, unless it is interactive, even a group of static layouts can’t tell the whole product story. I am saying this because our interface now became more device independent, transitional and alive like a real product.

If we think of a human body, then design is skin and interface are bones, which gives shape to skin and gives it a meaningful body structure.

Let’s stop talking shit and let me show how code do magical designing…

Suppose we have a layout for which our client wants that, it should be viewed properly on all browser supportive devices. So, here comes the magic of code and we will code it once and it will work on all devices automatically. Let’s see how:

Just copy all the code and paste in a text editor and save it as, lets say test.html. And test it on browsers (advanced browsers).

There is a lot more stuff, like a new term which has evolved now a days is “RAPID PROTOTYPING“. It is something we do after design and before we start working on interface designing. The need of this is to demonstrate 20% of the actual product which users use 80% in the product most of the time.

Kotlin Programming Language now supported in Android

Google has just unveiled in their I/O 2017 conference that Android will officially support Kotlin programming language and got huge applause from the IT world. It is an open source project under Apache 2.0 license and built by JetBrains who earlier built IntelliJ. Google has announced that Kotlin is brilliantly designed, mature and will take android development to the next level as it is fast and fully supported by Java. Using Kotlin in Android development will be more fun.

For Android developers, Kotlin as a “first-class” language, is a chance to use a modern, powerful and mature language. It will help to solve the run-time exceptions and source code verbosity. Kotlin provides the flexibility which means it can be easily introduced into an existing project. Kotlin emits the java bytecode and can call java and vice versa out of the box. “The effortless inter-operation between the two languages” was a large part of Kotlin’s appeal to the Android team.

Covariance, Contravariance & inline function | The Startup

Developers can play around the Kotlin using Android Studio 3.0 and there is no need to install any extra plugin or worry about the compatibility issue. You can open the existing Java file, and then choose the option “Convert Java File to Kotlin File”. Android Studio will then add all required Kotlin dependencies into your project and the equivalent Kotlin code. Isn’t this cool?

Kotlin’s major goal is to be available on multiple platforms. Also, they are pretty much busy on working on native platforms like iOS, IoT, macOS, embedded systems.

As said by Google, some of the apps have already started using Kotlin like Expedia, Flipboard, Pinterest, Square. They are getting very positive feedback.

Kotlin has a lot in common to Java in structure as it’s object oriented and statically typed. It is designed for the problem that actually Java solves.

Some of the cool features of Kotlin

Features of Kotlin - DEV Community

  1. Nullability is a very common problem in Java. Basically having null references in the application can kill it. Kotlin finds the difference between the reference that can hold the null or that can’t, effortlessly.
  2. Switching from Java is easy as there is an option to convert Java files in Kotlin directly from the plugin in Android Studio.
  3. Kotlin is versatile and interoperable with Java as developers can write their own module that will work with Java code. It’s compatible with the existing Java library.
  4. Kotlin’s architecture is written in such a way that one has to write less code; at least 20% less while development, which is fascinating.
  5. A common problem in Android development that causes inefficiency to Java code is extra garbage collection. So Kotlin does a fabulous job to avoid this problem.
  6. The Lean syntax in Kotlin language is very convenient. Kotlin balances terseness and readability in syntax which helps to write the code faster and allows better productivity.
  7. Kotlin also provides Functional programming support with zero-overhead Lambdas.
  8. It imposes no runtime overhead.
  9. Kotlin’s extension functions are helpful in building really clean APIs and solve a bunch of other problems.
  10. The == operator does exactly what the community expects.

To learn more about Kotlin, check out their official website.

JS Developer: Learn Python

Python and JS are the two most popular programming languages. I was working as a MEAN/MERN Stack Software Engineer where I used Javascript as a coding language. Recently I switched to Python for a second project.
JavaScript vs Python : Can Python Overtop JavaScript by 2020? - GeeksforGeeks

In this blog, I will share my experience of working on both languages at the same time. Let’s get started.

Below are the code snippets which describe the major syntax differences. Can you observe how different they are?

The syntax b/w Javascript and Python are very different as shown in the above sample blocks. Sometimes I make mistakes by using one’s syntax in another. To avoid this these IDE’s are really helpful– IntelliJ (Python) and Vscode (Javascript).

Below are the major differences that I came across:-

  1. Python code uses tabs for a code block whereas JS uses { }
  2. Python uses ‘#’ for comment while JS use ‘//’
  3. Python uses the ‘print’ keyword whereas JS uses ‘console’ keyword to debug anything in the console panel.
  4. Python Function uses a ‘def’ keyword to define function whereas JS uses ‘function’ keyword
  5. The constructor of the Python class is defined by ‘__init__’ whereas JS uses a normal constructor.
  6. The semicolon is not mandatory in both languages to define the end of a statement. But we use it in JS because if we don’t apply it, JS engine will apply it automatically and create unnecessary bugs in the code.

 

Python VS JavaScript – What are the Key Differences Between The Two Popular Programming Languages?

Approaches to implement task in different languages

Every language has its own beauty. While solving any task with NodeJS I need to think in a different way than implementing them in Python. In some scenarios, Python wins and in some NodeJS.

Just a small example-

To create a Task manager backend in NodeJS, I need to use Express. To replicate the same functionality in Python, I need to use Flask.

Checkout repo for basic task manager https://github.com/agarwalparas/task-manager

However, later on, if my backend needs a functionality of Machine learning to manage tasks and prioritize them on the basis of users’ behaviour, then I will surely use Python.

Whereas if my backend needs high speed to list tasks or to search from tasks or for faster real time updates of tasks within the team, then I will surely use NodeJS.

So, it is really tough to decide which language to use in which project. But it is fairly straightforward to say which language can be used for a particular task.

After some experience, I have figured out a way to decide which language is better for a project.

NodeJS for Chat Applications and Realtime Apps whereas Python for Analytics, Machine Learning, Command Line Utilities.

Some important concepts

F String in Python and Template literals in Javascript

The F string and template literals are great new ways to format strings. Not only are they more readable, more concise, and less prone to error than other ways of formatting, they are also faster!

Decorators in Python and Callback Function in Javascript

Decorators and Callback Function are very powerful and useful tools since they allow programmers to modify the behavior of function or class. In Decorators, functions are taken as the argument into another function and then called inside the wrapper function whereas in Javascript the function passed as argument is called callback function.

Async/Await in NodeJS 

Before async/await, JS used promises but its code was a little complex to debug and caused callback problems.

Then JS introduced a neat syntax to work with promises in a more comfortable fashion. It’s called “async/await” and is relatively easy to understand and use.

Conclusion

So all in all it’s a very exciting journey. Both languages have some pros and cons. But isn’t it the same with everything. Different languages exist because there is no one-size fits all approach to programming. In fact, their existence gives us tools to help create more robust products. My experience of working with Python and JS simultaneously has helped me gain more exposure to the world of programming languages and I now look forward to learning more about other unknown languages.

 

Full Stack Frameworks: Pros of 2020

Full Stack Frameworks: Pros of 2020

In today’s modern world, everything is instant to our hands with sophisticated technologies. As the adaptability of online space proliferates, web development technologies also get mature leading to developing more complex feature-rich web apps. The advancements in technology have also raised the bar of customers in terms of an elemental online presence. Each company looks forward to working with a service provider who is well-versed with the latest web development trends and is proficient in the work that they do.

Web development frameworks support the development of web apps, websites and web resources, web services as well as web APIs. Simply put, they are nothing but libraries that help you build your web app efficiently and effortlessly.

With the market flooding with new web development frameworks every day, it can be very challenging to choose which one would be the best fit for your project. The whole process can be made very easy if the developers are well-versed with the below-mentioned web development technologies and frameworks:

Top 10 Web Development Frameworks

1. Spring- Java Framework

Spring Framework Helps you to Develop robust Java applications very easily and very rapidly. | by Arpit Dixit | IndiaNIC | Medium

Spring is one of the most renowned frameworks enterprise-grade app development using Java. The primary intent of having this framework is to ease the process of making J2EE apps. It is a back-end development framework based on Java, which enables developers to create simple, fast, flexible Java Applications. Used by many big names like Wix and Ticket Master, Spring has a rigid architecture that provides the developers with a frame for their future projects.

2. Vue.JS

Introduction to Vue.js + BigCommerce | by Nancy Montiel | BigCommerce Developer Blog | Medium

One of the most adaptive frameworks, Vue, is an advanced framework used to build outstanding user-interfaces. With a central library emphasizing on the view layer, integrating it with other libraries and preexisting projects is a piece of cake. The integration of Vue in your projects is very similar to that of Jquery, and there is no necessity whatsoever of a build step. Created by Evan You, it is a framework that focuses on component composition and declarative rendering. Moreover, Vue is an excellent choice if you want to develop a powerful SPA (Single Page Application) as it is loaded with lots of supporting libraries and modern tools.

3. Yii Framework

Logo Yii Framework | Zend

Yii is a powerful, practical, and flexible web development framework based on PHP. Yii is an acronym for Yes it is! Which stands quite an appropriate answer to the question, “Is it so amazing?”. It is a universal web-app development framework that can develop any web application. It is an excellent option for high-traffic apps and websites like E-commerce websites, portals, Content Management Systems, or any complicated web app because of its exceptional security features. Since it models the data as objects, there is no need to go on writing monotonous SQL queries and statements. It also provides many cache mechanisms like cFileCache, cDummyCache, cMemCache, thereby allowing an effortless cache app component integration. Yii is loaded with great features and comes with clear-documentation.

4. Symphony Framework

Why We Use Symfony. What the framework is and why we think… | by Maygen Jacques | Code Enigma | Medium

Symphony is a feature-rich, reusable, highly flexible full-stack web development framework. It provides the developers with a complete free-hand with working on a RAD environment by giving a vivid choice of 30 components. It is based on the Model View Controller (MVC) System, which allows session management, decoupled components, and error logging and is easily maintainable. It can be effortlessly clubbed with many renowned client-side frameworks like AngularJS along with other third-party apps. It is a collection of Web App Frameworks and PHP components and boasts the two most stellar benefits, Bundles, and Components.

5. AngularJS

AngularJS: "Controller as" or "$scope"?

Based on the comprehensive programming language- JavaScript, AngularJS is a multifaceted open-source front-end framework. With the growing fame of SPAs (Single Page Applications) Development, the popularity of AngularJS is also speeding up. Developed and maintained by Google, AngularJS helps you create dynamic web pages utilizing JavaScript and HTML. Additionally, Patterns are created in AngularJS with the help of the Declarative Paradigm to make the core easy to read and very light-weight. The need for additional getter and setter functions is eradicated by the presence of POJO, which allows object manipulation using` standard JavaScript Functionalities.

6. Rails Framework

Rails Logo - LogoDix

Ruby on Rails is a very proficient web development program developed by David Heinemeier Hansson in the year 2003. Considered as very developer-friendly, Rails is an opensource, object-oriented, general-purpose back-end development framework. Rails follow the DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself) and CoC (Convention over Configuration) approach, which facilitates the building of light-weight apps and boosts flexibility. It also ensures flawless interaction with third-party apps by allowing each object to possess unique attributes. The applications are maintained to be bug-free as the developers are provided with a detailed error-log. It also supports the development of SEO friendly URLs.

7. Laravel

12 Reasons why Laravel Is the Best PHP Framework

One of the most fantastic PHP web frameworks, Laravel, has an exquisite and expressive structure that backs out ordinary errands, for example, authentication, sessions, storing, and steering. The main aim of the Laravel Framework is to make the process of development easy and fun. Laravel emerges as the top choice of many developers as it offers excellent performance, scalability, and features. Its unique architecture enables the developers to build customized infrastructure for their apps. It also has an integrated cloud storage system like Amazon S3 and Rack Space, along with local storage.

8. Tensor Flow

Learn TensorFlow Fundamentals in 20 Minutes | by Chidume Nnamdi ???? | Bits and Pieces

It is a unique, open-source library for mathematical computation utilizing the data-flow graphs. Tensor Flow is exclusively used for Artificial Intelligence apps that involve a massive community with itself. Although it has a broad range of uses, it is preferred to be used in the domains of Deep Learning. With the boom in the AI and ML technologies, TensorFlow has also seen a rise in the number of users as it is the framework of the future. Artificial intelligence is perceived to takeover every field and every niche, which is a positive indication for the use of TensorFlow.

9. CakePHP

CakePHP - Build fast, grow solid | PHP Framework | Home

CakePHP is a revolutionary PHP framework that simplifies the developers’ job by eliminating the need for developing an app from scratch. Its various scaffolding features, along with the swift code generation, dramatically cut down the development cost. The ability to reuse the code in CakePHP makes the web development process very rapid. Not just that, but most of the essential elements for building an application are in-built in CakePHP, which saves a lot of developers’ precious time. The availability of vivid documentation and pragmatic guides along with colossal community support is a cherry on the top.

10. MeteorJS

Beckon Delve

MeteorJS is, hands-down, the best choice if you are looking for speedy web development as it is a full-stack web development framework, which solves both your front-end and back-end needs. It is a JavaScript framework that has an in-built collection on libraries and packages that are linked and bound together. It is an isomorphic framework that can be utilized to create a cross-platform code. It is based on MEAN stack and comprises of many components like Cordova, Communication Line Tool, CLI, Browser, and Server.

Summary

With the exponential amplification of the tech world, new web development tools and frameworks are rising every day. The competition is the market is fierce, and you need to select nothing but the best for your project. The above list can help you choose the best web development framework that fits well with the requirements of your business and help you grow manifolds.

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