Google has hit another home run with the release of Angular 7 in October 2018. This release was a mere five months after the release of Angular 6. Created by the Angular team at Google, along with a community of individuals and corporations, this TypeScript-based software is more robust and manageable than JavaScript-based programs. Angular is a complete rewrite of Angular JS as an open-source, front-end web application.
Angular 7 allows developers to easily create single-page applications (SPA), streamlining the development process while designing user-friendly and interactive websites and apps. This latest version is full of exciting new features and benefits.
New features in Angular 7
Angular 7’s new features include the following:
- Command-line interface (CLI) prompts, to help users discover built-in features
- Application performance improvements, such as alerts when apps reach certain limits
- Angular Material Component Development Kit (CDK), which includes virtual scrolling and drag-and-drop functionality
- Better accessibility of Selects, to load data more quickly
- Partner launches, including Angular Console, NativeScript, and StackBlitz
Angular 7 benefits
Angular 7 provides a number of benefits. For example:
- Cross-platform functionality — Progressive web apps and native mobile apps are easily created and installed across Mac, Windows, and Linux platforms. Angular 7 allows you to use the same methods regardless of the platform you intend to install apps on.
- Speed and performance — Angular automatically turns your templates into code and utilizes code-splitting when users access your apps and websites. This improves ROI by letting you go live quickly. It also enhances the user experience, with apps that load quickly because they use only the code needed to give users the ability to view the information they want to see.
- Productivity — Templates, Angular CLI, and integrated development environments (IDEs) all work together to increase productivity, allowing you to improve performance and meet evolving business demands faster. Build your apps and websites quickly, and instantly deploy — while getting errors and feedback delivered to you in real time.
- Development — Test, animate, and access your apps with confidence. Angular 7 lets you run tests faster because you know immediately if you break something. Easily add complex animations, and design easily accessible apps.
Best Practice Tip — Redux vs. @Input
It’s crucial that programmers follow best practices when using Angular 7 to fully realize its benefits. One such practice — and it’s an important one — is to use Redux instead of the @Input decorator. This is a universally recommended best practice, and there are many reasons for it.
First of all, the @Input decorator has many shortcomings, including:
- In order to pass from one component to another, input properties must be used to pass data down the component tree. This means that data needs to be passed to components in between as well. These components do not make use of the data, so this approach is inefficient.
- Defining a lot of input properties to pass data between components makes components inflexible. Because components rely on those input properties, they cannot be reused elsewhere.
- If the state is changed within one component, all other components that make use of the same data need to be notified manually.
To solve these problems, programmers need to establish a new way of managing states within applications. This is where Redux comes in. Redux is a predictable state container for JavaScript apps that makes it possible to use a centralized state management in your application. This eliminates the challenges listed above, streamlines the development process, and creates more efficient websites and apps.
Whether you recently upgraded to Angular 7 or are ready to add it to your toolbox, learning the ins and outs is essential to reaping the platform’s many benefits. Speak to one of our Angular experts regarding our specialized training courses designed to get you up to speed quickly with practical, hands-on training.
Need help training your IT staff on Angular programming? Contact me at ProTech Training at 800-373-9188 ext. 112 or by email at: tnoca@protechtraining.com