Is React JS Framework (or is React a Library)? (Solved)

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By: Sagar Sharma

Is React JS Framework (or is React a Library)?

JavaScript is known for its abundance of new plugins, frameworks, and other things created by its massive community of developers and designers.

The JavaScript community as a whole is thriving and is on its way to becoming one of the world’s largest online developer’s community.

You must be wondering what this fact has to do with the React JS framework and other frameworks. The truth is that many of the leading IT firms have already embraced JavaScript and leveraging its benefits.

The Significance of JavaScript and Framework

JavaScript has no longer remained a fancy language used for front-end web app development. It is much more than that. Frameworks like React are being used to build mobile web and mobile apps.

This is one of the primary reasons why developers are moving towards JavaScript frameworks and libraries. It helps a developer to develop stunning single-page applications in quite less time than earlier.

JavaScript has not only reduced the website development time but also fostered creativity among developers. Hence, today, even simple web apps such as single-page applications can be extremely creative.

However, all these benefits are of no use if these JS libraries can not build an application in the given time and budget. Hence, while using JS libraries, your first aim should always be to complete the project in a given time and money.

This is where the input framework> comes into the picture. It can deal with a majority of the project needs out-of-the-box. Sounds like an attractive solution? Well, not yet.

“React JS Framework” or “React JS Library”?

The hype of the React JS framework is so much that every small and big corporation is comparing it with the input framework. They are comparing React’s ability to handle view with the input framework, which is quite elegant and fast.

But, the truth is that unlike input framework, React cannot do these kinds of stuff. Then, why do people call React JS a framework?

It seems that the denotation of React JS as a framework has always been wrong. React JS is not a framework.

We know that React is really good at handling the view. While doing so, you’ll see a lot of perks of React such as modularity and separations of concerns.

React allows you to recycle components multiple times in a single web application. This method is recognized as a functional way of programming.

Why Use React for the Patch Work?

The view is handled by React JS components, which usually do not care about the outside world. They seem very much like pure functions React components that would always give the same output upon providing the same input.

This is one of the reasons why people use React to fix their broken projects. For example, Let’s say you want to fix an old web app project.

Will you start the project from scratch using Ruby on Rails or patch your software using React JS? The answer will be patching your project using React JS.

Scraping your old project and starting it again using other technology can be a massive risk that you’ll take. However, replacing a section or sections of your project’s view with React will not be a huge risk.

Before you start to fix any section using React, everyone on the team must be sure and confident to choose a section that needs improvement.

Since React JS is not a framework, you’ll not be in control of every aspect of your project. Also, you need to ask your back-end developers to tweak the API, which you can feed to React for it to deal with the view.

Why React JS in the first place?

Many businesses would have built their applications with a robust codebase. Hence, they will resist any kind of drastic of massive change. You will not be able to provide high flexibility with input framework.

No input framework can provide you the intrusive flexibility as React JS. Hence, you can never compare React with input framework since both of them have different applications.

One can not simply cast React as a framework because it is not the only one that allows you to perform non-intrusive view layers. One of the best things about React is that it pulls a developer into knowing how input framework works.

With React, you’ll mostly be coding with Vanilla JS, which is better than providing them with an end-to-end solution like a framework. Now, developers will learn JavaScript the way they want and not the other way around.

It is always good for developers to be known as a JavaScript developer rather than a particular input framework developer. Even if you want to specialize in a framework, you should know the basics of JS.

It is always recommended for novice developers to learn JavaScript first instead of a framework. Because, if you know JavaScript, you can learn any framework.

React is great not being a framework because it is so minimal and deals with so little that a developer will have to learn JavaScript anyway to deal with bigger problems that React JS cannot solve.

Conclusion

So, Is React JS framework? The answer is a big no. It is a library rather than a framework. Another reason for React to be a library and not a framework is the amount of flexibility it provides to users. It provides much more flexibility to users compared to a framework. Hence, React is not a framework but, a library.

FAQs

1) Why is Angular a framework and React is a library?

Angular is a framework because it controls and connects both Model and View, whereas React JS is a library because it controls only View.

2) What is the difference between a library and a framework?

One uses the library when he/she wants to control the flow of the application. One uses a framework when he/she wants the framework to be in charge of the flow.

3) What is React JS good for?

React JS is an opensource JS library that is used to build single-page applications. It allows a developer to create reusable UI components.

4) Why is React JS better?

React JS prevents updating DOM frequently. The app renders faster than other frameworks and delivers better performance and user experience than other frameworks.

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