What are Desktop Applications?
If you are thinking of what desktop applications are, according to the Balance the applications which run on a Mac, Windows or Linux environment and are less portable versions. With the dawn of the new technological era, mobile devices became much more advanced that it is similar to the desktop application. There are some more definitions to what a desktop application is; there is another definition stated as an application which can be run standalone without any other desktop applications to run to work with it, this does not count features such as Internet connections.
What is Electron JS?
Electron is a framework to create a native application from using web technologies; such as JavaScript, HTML and CSS. Electron JS integrates the JavaScript runtime framework to create a desktop-suite web application. The framework is an open-source language started by Cheng Zhao who is an engineer at GitHub.
The electron JS architecture uses Node JS as the base architecture and the V8 JavaScript Engine to top it up. Due to the use of Node JS, Electron JS provides the interactive shells and can execute raw JavaScript codes. Furthermore, the V8 JS Engine has a good support base as Google develops it.
Benefits of Electron JS
- As Electron JS uses simple web technologies, therefore, it does not require any special skills,
- Can be designed by using any browser and it is platform friendly,
- Uses NPM modules as other JS plugins,
- Does not need any further configurations with the OS,
- Can facilitate auto-upgrading and crash reporting.
Famous Applications that use Electron JS
- Atom, it is a cross-platform text editor for development purposes, developed by GitHub.
- VS Code, this is another powerful cross-platform text editor. This application is developed by Microsoft.
- Slack, this a cross-platform app which helps with team communication and productivity.
- Skype, this is also developed by Microsoft. The application is still a popular communication application used by many businesses and individuals.
To get started with Electron, first can install node and follow the steps as mentioned in the documentation. Visit this link to view the documentation First App Tutorial
References:
- Electron, (https://electronjs.org/)
- Shelley Elmblad, How is Desktop Software Different from an App, (https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-desktop-software-1293673)
- Matt Warcholinski, What is Electron JS, (https://brainhub.eu/blog/what-is-electron-js/)
- Brainhub, Electron JS, (https://brainhub.eu/electron-js)
- Electron, Writing your First Electron App, (https://electronjs.org/docs/tutorial/first-app)
