Introduction To Modern Day Web Development
New ideas and innovations are what make the world a dynamic place. Earth is constantly changing, science and technology being a driving force behind the rapid change in every facet of the world. Let us take for instance a boomer and a Gen z. There will always be a visible discrepancy in both generations. The development in the science and technology, Web development, and other aspects back in a Boomer’s time won’t be as robust as the developments in the Gen Zs’.
The way we code, the types of programming language, and the tools needed for those codes have changed. Nowadays, anyone can code because it’s now very easy. That shows how well web development has been modernized.
Back then when NASA wanted to explore the moon, the programming language, tools, etc. used then were a little more complicated than the modern ones, and not too many people knew about them.
For instance, in the Internet sector. We have come a long way in this particular sector. Gone are the days when we had a 2G network connection which was definitely not the fastest internet service. But slowly we moved to a 3G connection which is faster than the former. Then comes the 4G network. Now the major discussion around the world now centers around 5G connection which will be the fastest of the lots.
Impacts Of Web Development
The robust development this sector has undergone in the past years has been a joy to watch and admire. Of course, development never stops, it has no limit. So many breakthroughs, new discoveries and all that. It is safe to say that It just keeps going on and on.
Web development which is otherwise known as web programming basically involves the creation of web applications or developing a website for a private network (intranet) or the internet (which is also known as the World Wide Web).
When we talk about Web applications, we refer to social networking sites such as the popular Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, etc, and e-commerce sites such as Jumia (a popular retailing website in West Africa), Amazon, eBay, among others.
Contrary to what everyone says, learning web development/programming is very easy. It just depends on your dedication and the availability of the right tools and guidance.
In order to build a web application, one needs to get familiar with “coding”. Coding refers to the act of writing a computer program by converting ordinary language into code.
Before the advent of python, Java, etc programmers make use of basic C code to develop a website.
Forms Of Web Development
There are two basic forms of web development. They are:
1. Front-end development that is otherwise known as Clients-side development and
2. Back-end development that is also known as Server side development.
1. Front-End Development
This refers to the construction of what the people see when they load your website or web application. This includes web designs, all the web content, and also how visitors react to the web page.
This type of web construction can be done by three basic codes and they are HTML, JavaScript, and CSS Code.
a) HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. This code is used to write web pages. Everything you see on the website is written with HTML codes.
b) JavaScript: What this code does is to add functionality to a website. Not only this, but it also adds interactivity features to a web page. Programmers use JavaScript to develop different types of applications such as Chatbots, Web, desktops, mobile applications, machine language, amongst others.
As you will expect, this Language has numerous advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages include:
- It is very fast.
- The availability of its server is high
- It has numerous interfaces for better user experience.
The Cons of this language are:
- Bland security on the side of the client
- New features in this Language are not always supported by old browsers.
Generally, JavaScript is used to design web interfaces such as the interactive interface and the general web pages.
c) CSS code: This stands for Cascading Style Sheets. This computer code is used to design webpages. That is, the colors, fonts, scales, etc of a webpage.
2. Back-end Development
This refers to the construction of what goes on behind the web application. It makes use of a database that can be used to generate the front-end.
Codes used in building this includes:
a) PHP
b) Java
c) Nodes.js
d) Python
e) Perl
f) ASP.NET
g) Ruby on Rails, etc.
Let us briefly discuss a few out of these.
Java
Java is used by programmers to build Enterprise applications and applications of different types. Database connection, XML parsing, etc. are some of the tasks Java performs.
The pros of this Language include;
- You only need to write it once as it can run everywhere.
- High security
- It has abundant APIs
The cons include
- It is very slow and it consumes memory.
- It is not written specifically for desktop.
Ruby on Rails
Ruby on rail is an open-source programming language. It allows developers to create web applications faster.
Advantage include:
- It saves time and money.
- It works well with different Technologies.
Disadvantage include:
- It is slow
- It is not really flexible.
What is Python Programming?
Python Programming is arguably one of the best and dynamic programming languages out there. For beginners, it is always advisable that they grab the concept of Python Programming Language before any other computer language because its features are what makes it special.
Python Programming Language is not new in the coding world, it had its inception in the early 1990s. As I said earlier, Python Programming Language has been popular since the 1990s and even as at now, there are millions of people who are still learning this object-oriented programming language.
According to a survey conducted by a popular programming community known as the TIOBE INDEX, their survey shows that Python Programming Language is the third most popular programming language in the world.
Another survey shows that well over 1 million websites in the whole world are Python customers
So, what then is Python?
Python can be seen as an object-oriented and a high-level programming language that is designed in C.
In order not to confuse ourselves, what is the C Programming Language?
C programming language was developed in the 1970s. Despite this, C Programming Language is still widely known as the mother of all programming languages. This is as a result of its powerful nature to support many functionalities. And not only this, but it is also strong enough to interact with the kernel and the hardware unit.
Features of C language include
- Rich Library
- Extensible
- Recursion
- Pointers
- It is fast
- It manages memory efficiently.
- High-level language and
- Structured Language.
Now back to Python Programming Language, this programming language is useful when it comes to the creation of simple and complex operations.
Inbuilt in this computer language are modules and libraries that allow the program to support other types of programming language. Examples of these include Java, C++, C, JSON, amongst others.
Features of Python Programming
Python features are what makes it a very versatile, durable, and dynamic programming language.
When I say that Python language is dynamic, it means that we necessarily do not need to proclaim the type of variable because the python language is dynamically typed.
Let’s take for instance X=10.
The “X” in there can stand for anything such as int, String, etc.
Here are a few out of the numerous features of Python language.
1. It is very easy to code: Python language is very easy to code, even to beginners. Unlike other languages such as Java, C++, JavaScript, etc that are somewhat hard to code, python on the other hand is very easy to code.
As an upcoming developer, it is always advisable to learn Python because it is a developer-friendly language.
If you can get access to the right tools and tutors, you would be a pro in it within a month.
2. It’s open-source code: When we call something “open source” in programming, we mean that the source code is available to the general public. Not only is it available to the public, but it is also free on their official website.
So, you can download it for personal use and you can also share it with other people.
3. It’s an object-oriented language: This particular feature is what makes Python language stand out among other programming languages. This means that it supports concepts of object encapsulation and classes.
4. Graphical User Interface (GUI) support: Graphical User Interface is a program that is supported by Python. This interface makes use of Python modules such as the PyQt5, PyQt4, TK, wxPython, etc.
By a stretch, PyQt5 is the most populous module that can be used to create a Graphical app using Python.
5. Portable Language: Python is quite a portable language. What I mean by portable is, when there is a working Python code for Windows OS, such Python code can also work on other operating systems (OS) such as Unix, Linux, Mac, Apple, etc without having to alter the code.
This shows just how versatile Python language is.
6. Python is an integration Language: Another important feature of Python language is the ability to integrate another programming language to it.
Languages such as C++, C can be integrated with a Python language.
7. Python is dynamic: Another feature of Python is how dynamic it is. Thus, Python is a dynamically-typed language. That means that variables are not determined in advance, but rather in run time. This helps to save time and rightly increase efficiency.
8. Extensibility: This feature shows that Python is a very extensive language. Python codes can be protruded into C++ or even C language. And not only this, we can as well compile those codes in C/C++ programming language.
Why Python Programming Is Ideal For Startups
Python users are growing daily, many people are beginning to see why it is one – if not the best programming language in the programming world.
For new and existing programmers, choosing Python as their new programming language shouldn’t be much of a problem because this section will expose you to why you should choose Python language.
- Versatility
- Excellent MVP development
- It is ubiquitous
- User-friendly
- Security
- Simplicity
- Community Support
- Scalable.
1. VERSATILITY
Python Programming Language is so versatile that it can be used in any web or application development. Python code works well in different development platforms such as Windows, Linus, MacOS, etc. Remarkably, it tends to reduce the cost of development while also saving time.
Python language is used in developing mobile or system games, prototyping, frameworks of web pages, Application used in graphics designing, Data Science, and most recently – in AI development, etc.
As a programmer, if you are developing an application that requires Machine Language (ML), Python Programming Language is your ideal language to use because it is a high-level simple language that makes prototyping super fast, as well as the machine learning algorithm.
2. SECURITY
From other programming languages that I have explained above, it could be deduced that most of them do not guarantee security. Over the past few years, Cybersecurity experts have used Python Programming Language to prevent Cyber attacks from Cybercriminals. Python offers so many Cybersecurity functions such as malware Analysis, Testing tasks (testing for penetrations, etc), makes debugging very easy. For anyone new in the Cybersecurity field, it is recommended that they start with Python because it is very easy to understand.
3. USER-FRIENDLY
If there is one thing that has made developers fall in love with Python completely, that would be its cool interface and designs. Python is distinguished by its simplicity, neatness, beauty, how well structured it is, how easy to learn, and use it. For startups, learning about Python saves time and money.
4. COMMUNITY SUPPORT
One of the great things about this programming language is its popularity in the coding world. Mainstay developers as well as new developers absolutely love and support it. Python’s programmer community is arguably one of the very best in the world. This means that the Python community is very large.
Programmers in this programming community are readily available to assist you if you encounter a problem or while you are performing a complex task. The aim and object of this group are to improve Python’s functionalities and core features.
5. SCALABLE
Python language offers flexibility to a business venture. Flexibility in the sense that it can scale up and down quite easily. Apart from the fact that Python can easily be maintained, it also facilitates quick and healthy growth.
6. SIMPLICITY
Python is majorly characterized by its simplicity. Unlike other programming languages such as Java, C++, JavaScript, etc. Python is so powerful and yet so simple that even if you are new to programming, its elegant, and simple syntax will help you to quickly grasp the idea of it.
7. EXCELLENT MVP DEVELOPMENT
MVP here stands for Minimum Viable Product. Poor marketing strategies, lack of any viable business models are some of the reasons why businesses fail. Here is a quick fact, almost 70% of new Businesses always fail – is that hard to believe? I think not. Minimum Viable Product or MVP is a kind of tool that is developed for business owners that would help in measuring customer’s behavior and responses towards a particular Product.
The feedback that the customers gave are then used to develop the final products that will in turn lead to a significant decrease in product failure. Minimum Viable Product is basically a tool for opinion polls. Usually, there are so many Tech stacks that help in developing MVP, they include Ruby on Rails, Python, PHP or Laravel, Node.js, etc. But for the purpose of this discourse, let us look at how Python helps in the development of MVP.
As we all know, Python language is a very dynamic language and it is also an interpreted language. It is useful in the development of Machine Language (ML) and also Artificial intelligence (AI), Chatbots, etc. This makes Python a wonderful tech stacks that empower MVP development.
8. IT IS UBIQUITOUS
When we say something is ubiquitous, we mean it is present everywhere, it can be found anywhere. And such is the nature of the Python language. Even if you are applying for a job, a lot of job listings require applicants to know a thing or two about Python – and that clearly shows how popular the program is.
If you are a computer science student, student of any course related to programming (data scientists, etc.) or just someone that is enthusiastic about computer programming, it is advisable that you know Python Programming Language before any other computer Language. Python is fast which thus aids development as compared to other languages such as Java, JavaScript, C, C++, etc.
Famous companies that use Python: In this section, I am going to list a few out of the numerous big companies that use Python Programming Language, and they include:
Google, Spotify, Quora, Netflix, Dropbox, Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
Conclusion
From the features and the importance of the Python language that I have explained above, it is not so hard to agree with me that Python is the best, cheapest, and fastest programming Language out there. With its dynamic nature and numerous modules and directory that would aid you in any given task. It is versatile, has a well-run community, user-friendly, scalable, and it is also stable. For new programmers and big companies, Python programming is surely a best bet.