Following our Bootcamp launches this summer, Hackwagon will soon be starting our full-fledged Web Development Courses. These include the Web Development Basic courses, JS101 and JS102, and Web Development Full-Stack course JS401. These courses center on different aspects of web development, with JS101 and JS102 focusing on front-end and back-end developments respectively. JS401 covers these both and more in a crash course format, spanning 6 weeks instead of the 14 the basic courses do.
Hackwagon’s education pipeline embodies our belief that an effective web developer is proficient at both front and back-end approaches. Having skills in these both will make you more sought after in the job market. So what exactly do front and back end approaches entail? For the individual looking to start learn Javascript and Web Development, this article serves to unpack these terms.
Explanations inspired by: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-front-end-and-back-end-development
In essence, Web Development, has 3 major components
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Web Design
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Front-End Development
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Back-End Development
With his or her knowledge on design principles, the eponymous Web Designer conceptualises the aesthetic of the website being built. This design is then passed on to the Front-End Web Developer who uses code to build and replicate the aesthetic. The codes involved here are HTML, CSS and Javascript. Nowadays, Web Design and Front-End Development are no longer very distinct and many companies who are looking to hire Web Designers also expect them to program the looks they design. Front-End Development is ultimately concerned with the look, feel and design of a website and is therefore often referred to as the client side of web development.
UI/UX design principles can be subsumed under Front-End Web Development
The problem with merely having an aesthetic website is that the data on it is only static. A website becomes functional if it is monitored and updated with new information. This is what the Back-End Web Developer is concerned with. He or she connects this website to a server and puts the data in a databases, ensuring the website runs smoothly. The Back End Developer familiarises him or herself with server side languages like Node.js or Python and is also acquainted with databases like MySQL or MongoDB. The role of a Back-End Developer is to code such that date is located and delivered to a website efficiently. An example of a dynamic website with a robust back-end is Facebook. Upon logging in to Facebook, our walls are often awash with information from many sources. All these are programmed to appear because the website communicates with a database.
Facebook Interface, invisible are the backend codes that make up this smorgasbord of information
It will seem apparent now that any web/mobile application requires front and back end developers. They are not mutually exclusive fields and their individual importances have given rise to the Full-Stack Web Developers we know of today; individuals who have honed both front and back end approaches to web development.
The graphic below summarises our discussed components of Web Development
By segmenting our web development classes, the Hackwagon team aims to maximise the learning needed for each aspect of web development. We ensure that you are industry ready upon graduation from our courses.
This article was written by Joshua Chan, an intern at Hackwagon Academy.