Benefits of Using NodeJS for Real-Time Chat App Development

Node.js has been gaining a lot of popularity as a real-time application development these days. And, this detailed guide encloses the right motivation for utilizing NodeJS for chat app development.
The world is witnessing technological innovations happening at a rapid pace. One among those innovations is mobile apps. If we talk about applications, they have a wide array of features that allow us in streamlining the daily tasks we perform. One of those features that particularly is known for ensuring live query resolution is the real-time chat feature.
Therefore, when we talk particularly about this feature or an app that is focused on the functionality of making real-time chats possible, developers rely on using NodeJS.
If you are planning to develop an app that includes real-time features such as chatting or any other kind of real-time interaction with users, you ought to utilize Node.js for your backend technology.
You may be wondering the reason for this. The answer is due to its asynchronous and event-driven approach. This helps the app to respond to as many requests as may be placed to them.
As you read the article, you will be enlightened with the major reasons for channeling the use of Node.js for real-time app development so that you can be aware of why more and more developers rely on the technology.
About Node.js
A cross-platform, open-source JavaScript run-time environment that is easy to run on OS like Windows, Linux, etc, NodeJS is a back-end run-time environment. In addition to being a back-end run-time environment, if we talk about the utilities of the technology, then we can state its usage is made possible in tasks like non-blocking event-driven servers, and for creating real-time applications.
Node.js is an exceptional choice for building real-time chat apps, and it will impart organizations with many benefits, including better productivity and usability.
This is why almost all such solutions that have the feasibility of providing real-time feature uses this technology.
Moving On
Knowing the basics of the technology; let us understand why it is being used in developing real-time apps, particularly real-time chat apps. However, before we do that, let us present you with the tasks a real-time app performs.
Different Activities Performed by Real-Time Apps
Check out the points to gain insight into the different activities that real-time apps perform to know their functions rather seamlessly.
- Smooth eCommerce transactions
- Instant messaging and chatting feasibility
- Video calling flexibility
- Supporting the task of community storage
Next
Knowing the different activities that real-time apps perform, you can understand why the use of Node.js is being relied on for this purpose. Though it may not be clear yet, let us present you with the same in the lines below. This will help you gain perspective on the reasons for using Node.js for real-time app development.
Benefits of NodeJS for Chat App Development
Check out what makes Node.js perfect for chat app development to gain insight into why developers rely on it.
Runs At Accelerated Speed
When you channel Nodejs development services for chat app development, it becomes easy to handle large volumes of data and have it streamed back to end-users without the requirement of multiple servers for handling the requests that come their way.
Is Easy to Move Data
With Node.js, it becomes easier for developers to move data between the server and the client to ensure optimal synchronization. This is due to their non-requirement of writing codes independently thereby helping them to save time in creating and executing it.
Helps Track Input & Output Activities
Through the support Node.js provides in tracking different input and output activities, followed by making the tasks of reading and decrypting inputs a streamlined one, it helps redirection-related tasks to take place smoothly so that it becomes easy to enter the end-point.
Is SEO-Friendly
This is another reason that makes Node.js a favorite among developers when they plan to develop real-time chat apps. As a result of the technology being SEO- friendly, therefore, it becomes possible to garner more audience and traffic, at the same time.
Enables Real-Time Communication
Through the use of WebSockets, it becomes easy to ensure a two-way, full-duplex communication channel over a single TCP connection. This is something that equally supports enabling real-time communication between clients and servers.
Uses a Single Language
Using a single language, JavaScript, the development process becomes accessible to perform for developers. This makes the maintenance activities for the back-end systems easier apart from saving time in adjusting codes from other languages.
Code is Reusable
Due to the code re-usability feature present in Node.js, it becomes easier for developers to switch out different components to observe how they will assist them in their progress. This is courtesy of the accessibility that developers get to different modules within communities like NPM or Node Package Manager.
Helps Accelerate App Scaling
Courtesy of Node.js having its base on the JavaScript programming language, it becomes easy to scale up the application. Especially due to the technology having its base on the single-threaded model, it becomes easy to manage client scalability requests.
Moving On
Looking at these different advantages of channeling the use of Node.js for real-time app development, you must be wondering how to go about the development-related task.
Frameworks & Libraries for Developing Real-time Applications Utilizing NodeJS
- Socket.IO
- Sails.js
- Express.js
- Feather.js
How to Develop Real-Time Apps with NodeJS?
To develop real-time apps with Node.js, it is recommended to follow the steps such as:
- Create a working directory by changing the directory to a newly created one.
- Initialize package.json to hold project-related information like name, author, etc.
- Install packages like Express, Socket.io, EJS (Embedded JavaScript), and body-parser to enable real-time communication, for building HTML markup for the front end and reading the body and incoming JSON object from the req.body.
- Start coding by entering the command ‘npm install express socket.io ejs body-parser – save’
- Try running the app by entering the command ‘ $ node app.js’.
Apart from the steps that are mentioned above, others that can particularly useful when you set out on the journey to build real-time chat apps using Node.js are-
- Set a login system up and create a friends list.
- Connect the system to the database so that past messages can be saved.
- Include the ‘About’ and ‘Profile’ sections.
- Work towards implementing features that are already present in apps like WhatsApp.
Take Node.js Advantage to Build Real-Time Chat App
As the market is currently competitive; hence when it comes to building apps that users can use for interacting in real-time has become an order of the day. When we talk about real-time feature, real-time notifications, and real-time messaging is probably the most popular among them. This is due to the way it automates user interaction. Therefore, if you are considering channeling its use for developing a real-time chat app; hire NodeJS developers. With their expertise, they will work towards creating a high-quality product that meets those specifications seamlessly.