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5 essential tools for faster frontend development in 2022

Posted on November 15, 2022 by monica jamwal

Frontend development isn’t always fast, as the development speed can suffer without the proper tools to incorporate complex app functionalities and visuals into the design. Fortunately, modern frontend development tools offer the rate to build applications much more efficiently.

This post will list the top 5 progressive frontend development tools for hassle-free web development.

Bit — Component-Driven for 10X

Modern frontend development is component-driven. Most modern frameworks focus on components to build apps faster.

Bit is an advanced frontend tool for next-generation component-driven development. It allows users to build components that can be used independently to compose different applications. As the components can run anywhere, you can build scalable applications faster.

The Bit Cloud Platform helps teams collaborate and build together. For instance, if you are building eCommerce, working on components for each product page can be time-consuming and tedious. Bit can speed up the process as it offers excellent features like reusable customizable component templates, impressive visual components docs, isolated unit-testing, and per-component versioning.

Overall, Bit is a powerful frontend development tool for Micro Frontends, Rapid App Development, System Designs, and faster delivery of projects.

npm (Node Package Manager)

It is hard to imagine modern frontend development without npm or Node Package Manager. The numbers can anticipate the extent of its use – over 10 million front-end developers download over 30 billion packages every month using npm.

Package managers are essential for front-end development as they help install new dependencies in the code without writing everything from scratch. Furthermore, they can handle duplicate dependencies- a significant hassle in frontend development that occurs when the same reliance occurs more than once.

Node Package Manager hosts a large software repository that includes popular BootStrap, Reach jQuery, and Vue packages. It would be best to use it in application development because it allows easy installation of node programs and reusable code packages. It is cross-platform compatible, implying you can use it on any OS for web app development. It is a standalone tool that you can use with almost any application.

GatsbyJS

GatsbyJS is one of the prominent frameworks for building static sites using JAMStack. Frontend developers can significantly speed up the web development process using GatsbyJS. It offers a readymade framework, rich web templates, and a well-optimized set of tools to start building out-of-the-box.

GatsbyJS is a free, open-source, React-based framework that makes it too easy to work with countless static pages. If you are working on a React project and want to deploy static pages, GatsbyJS is your best bet.

Developers use this framework to build React applications that are fast and optimized for performance and dev experience. Do not underestimate the scope of GatsbyJS for full-blown modern applications. With the availability of thousands of plugins, you can add extended functionalities to your JAMStack static sites.

Sentry.io

Sentry is an open-source full stack error tracking system.

Any frontend developer worth his salt knows that error tracking is essential for faster application development. With Sentry.io, you can track errors across servers, browsers, and frameworks. It allows error tracking for both desktop and mobile applications.

Another reason why this is an essential tool for frontend developers is that it is for web applications. You can install Sentry with just two commands, and the UI/UX is straightforward to use. It is an excellent tool for frontend developers to prevent errors from reaching production by identifying and resolving them early on.

Suppose you are working on an enterprise web application with a lot of backend code. It can be too time-consuming to track each conflict with the frontend code. You can deploy Sentry to trace all back-end errors caused by backend issues. This tool provides a holistic full stack approach to frontend error fixing. Sentry can automatically capture all unhandled exceptions to avoid rolling into a more significant problem.

Jira

Project management tools are essential for backend as well as frontend developers. Faster frontend development means collaborating efficiently and effectively with other developers and stakeholders.

Jira is a powerful project management tool for front-end developers that boosts team collaboration by facilitating project planning, bug and error management, task management, time tracking, and resource allocation.

When working on large projects such as an eCommerce portal, you will need to improve the project’s agility by allowing developers to collaborate without clashing. Jira can help teams with agile development at scale. It improves operational efficiency and delivers better results by keeping the teams aligned toward the same goal.

Conclusion

Frontend development is evolving fast, and there is so much innovation across the board. You do not have to stick with the slow and outdated tools; there are too many options available to speed up the development of your projects where time is of the essence. We hope these five front-end development tools will add value to your projects by helping you code faster and deliver the best results.

Some of the biggest brands trust Talent500 to hire, build, and manage their remote teams. Sign up here to join the elite frontend developers pool and get hired by the best companies.

Cracking Node.js interview for senior backend engineers in 2022

Posted on November 10, 2022November 17, 2022 by seoteam

Modern software application development is a requirement for most businesses to adopt and benefit from new technologies. Fortunately, backend developers have too many options to choose from. Node.js is a current application framework that has made large-scale application development easier.

Today, many companies use this backend technology for their tech stack. This includes well-known brands like Netflix, Uber, Twitter, and PayPal. According to StackOverflow’s 2021 Developer Survey, Node.js is the 6th most popular technology for backend development. According to a user survey report by Node.js, backend developers prefer this technology as it results in a 68% increase in developer productivity, boosts application performance by 48%, and results in a 13% increase in customer satisfaction.

Here we discuss the Node.js developer career landscape in detail.

Career Path in Node.js

Node.js developers as junior developers work on applications such as websites, native apps, and enterprise solutions. After spending 5-6 years on the technology as a senior developer, they get promoted to roles such as team lead, architect, scrum master, and product owners. Node.js developers can pursue a career as app developers, game developers, and product developers.

Developers who have a thorough knowledge of agile processes and ceremonies like backlog grooming, scrums, retrospectives, and demos are preferred for senior Node.js developer roles. Furthermore, the technical expertise of GitHub is also essential.

What skills will be evaluated during Node.js interviews?

Companies hiring Node.js developers look for some particular skill-sets. Along with good practical knowledge of Node.js, proven skills in fixing bugs and developing patches make a candidate stand out.

A competent Node.js developer, you should be comfortable with front-end technologies. Often, Node.js developers need to integrate various backend functionalities with front-end elements. Their HTML5, CSS3, and core JavaScript concepts are evaluated during an interview.

There are several Node.js frameworks, Express being the basic. Apart from Express, most interviews test developers’ knowledge of additional Node.js frameworks like Koa.js, Total, and Hapi. As these frameworks have expanded functionalities, you must familiarize yourself with them to demonstrate your experience.

Knowledge of Model-View-Controller (MVC) frameworks used in Node.js development is necessary. Sinatra, Rails, and StrongLoop are some important MVC frameworks.

Another responsibility of Node.js developers is to deal with interfaces between multiple systems. Here you can highlight your experience in working with RESTful APIs.

We already have great API-related resources for backend developers:

Tips on creating robust APIs as a backend developer

Best Practices to Design RESTful APIs

Also, check our guide on in-demand skills for a backend developer.

Interview Questions and Answers

Can Node.js support multi-processor platforms?

By default, Node.js is a single-threaded language that will run on the single processor core, thereby not taking full advantage of multi-core processors. However, Node.js supports the development of multi-core systems to take full advantage of the available hardware.

Node.js has the Cluster module that allows running multiple Node.js worker processes from the same port.

How does Node.js handle child threads?

Node.js is a single thread process that does not expose child threads to the developer. There is no way for a programmer to do thread management in Node.js, as everything goes behind the scenes.

Technically, Node.js does create child threads for specific tasks such as asynchronous I/O, but there is no way to execute any application JavaScript code for these child threads.

What are Promises in Node.js?

A promise is a placeholder in Node.js for a value available in the future. Commitments allow asynchronous methods in Node.js to return values just like synchronous methods. Instead of a final value, they return a promise. They have separate callback functions that are executed based on the status of the way, i.e., success/ failure and handling timeouts.

Promises in Node.js can have three different states:

The initial or the pending state
The fulfilled state represents a successful operation
The rejected state that results from a failed operation

What is REPL? What purpose is it used for?

REPL stands for READ, EVAL, PRINT, and LOOP. Node.js comes with a REPL environment bundled in its setup. This allows for the easy development of CLI (Command Line Interface) applications, usually part of enterprise software development.

Explain the preferred method of resolving unhandled exceptions in Node.js.

It is easy to catch unhandled exceptions in Node.js at the Process level by attaching a handler for uncaughtException event, something like this:

process.on(‘uncaughtException’, (err) => {
console.log(Caught exception: ${err});
});

However, as the uncaughtException remains a crude method for exception handling in Node.js, it is most likely to be removed in future language versions.

Also, this method catches the exception at the Process level, implying that the application and Node.js are in an undefined state. A better way to resolve unhandled exceptions in Node.js is to add another layer between your application and the Node.js process, called the domain.

As the domains provide a layer to handle multiple different I/O operations as a single group, you can safely handle exceptions at the domain level. It helps to prevent any exceptions from reaching the Process level.

The time required to run the following code snippet in Google Chrome is considerably more than the time it takes to run in Node.js.

{
console.time(“loop”);
for (var i = 0; i < 1000000; i += 1){
// Do nothing
}
console.timeEnd(“loop”);
}

Even when both the applications use v8 JavaScript Engine, explain why there is such a time difference.

In a web browser such as Chrome, we make it global when declaring the variable I out of the function’s scope. It binds the variable as a property of the window object. This results in repeated resolving of the property I with each for loop iteration within the heavily populated window namespace.

However, Node.js binds any variable declared outside of any function’s scope only to the module’s scope and not the window object. This is why the code resolves the value of I faster.

To improve the performance of the code in Chrome, we can replace var with let in the for loop declaration. It will reduce the loop’s run time by over 50%.

For more backend developer interview questions, you can check out:

Essential Interview Questions For Backend Developers With 1-3 Years Of Experience

Backend developer: interview preparation resources

Job prospects and average payscale Node.js developers

As of creating this guide, there were over 30,000 active job openings for Node.js developers on Naukri.com. Most of these ads were for experienced developers with at least one year of experience. LinkedIn has 55,000+ job listings for Node.js developers. Indeed has over 7000 active job openings for the same profile.

According to Glassdoor, the average salary of Node.js developers is INR 4,70,380 for junior developers. With experienced senior developers earn around INR 12,00,000 a year. Those in software developer IV roles get an average salary of INR 27,00,000.

Free Online Assessments

Node.js developers can use online free assessment tools to brush up on their skills and practice interview questions. Here are some online assessment sites:

Testdome.com

Devskiller.com

Tutorialsteacher.com

Conclusion

A career as a Node.js developer will be a long-term venture. As some of the biggest companies uses this technology and offer productivity benefits, Node.js will continue to be a dominant JavaScript framework.

Talent500 provides a global platform for elite developers. Our clients include fast-growing startups and Fortune 500 companies—signup today for a career change.

Cracking advanced level PHP Interviews in 2022

Posted on November 10, 2022 by harsha satyakam

PHP is one of the most widely used open-source general-purpose scripting languages that many companies use as their backend tech stack. Facebook is the most notable company using PHP. Demand for PHP developers remains high, and almost 79% of the top websites in the world use PHP as the server-side scripting language.

The number of PHP developers is growing at a fast pace and soon, it is likely that India will become the top source of PHP developers. It also implies that the competition for jobs will be stiff. Apart from your technical skills, you will also be required to have soft skills like communication, critical thinking, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills. We already have great resources on essential soft skills for software developers; you can check them out here:

Soft skills that still impress employers in 2022

Most valuable soft skills of exceptional software engineers

As far as the other skills are concerned, we will guide you through everything you need to know about a career in PHP development.

Career prospects: Demand, Job Openings, and Salary

PHP developers are some of the most in-demand professionals in the IT industry. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the demand for web developers will increase by 13% between 2020 and 2030. Therefore, the job outlook for PHP developers is quite promising.

There are 15,580 job openings for PHP developers on Naukri.com, followed by 12,000+ active listings for PHP developers on Indeed and over 8000 requirements for the same role on LinkedIn. The demand for experienced PHP developers is high at companies like Accenture, Tech Mahindra, and Wipro.

According to the salary analytics platform Payscale.com, the average salary for experienced PHP developers in India is INR 6,20,000. The earning potential of PHP developers is often dictated by the company they work at and the experience they possess. Most senior PHP developers earn over INR 9,00,000 per year.

What all do PHP interviews involve?

Generally speaking, PHP developers need to demonstrate competence with the job’s technical aspects that demand a unique skill set.

During an interview, your ability to write clean object-oriented PHP code is tested. Experienced developers must also be efficient with SQL.

Candidates must be able to evaluate, design, develop and assist application systems. They need to have command over one or more JavaScript frameworks such as Angular, Vue, and NodeJS. We recommend PHP developers hone their skills in Angular as PHP developers with experience in Angular earn 23% more.

You can check out our comprehensive Angular Developer Toolkit which has all the resources required to become a successful Angular Developer.

Also, companies expect PHP developers to be skilled in Laravel, the most popular model-view-controller (MVC) framework built with PHP.

Important Interview Questions and Answers

What will this code output, and why?
$x = true and false;
var_dump($x);

The output of the above code will be bool(true). It is because the AND operator is behaving as an OR. The = operator takes precedence over the AND operator in the code snippet. This results in the statement $x = true and false being functionally equivalent to:

$x = true; // sets $x equal to true
true and false; // results in false without affecting anything

This code is an excellent example of why parentheses are used to specify the intent in a court.

What is the difference between == and ===?

The operator == is used between two different types of values.
The === operator is for a ‘typesafe comparison.’ It returns true only when the operands have the same type and the same value.

Can you explain the output value of $x in the following statement:
$x = 3 + “15%” + “$25”?

The output value will be 18.

PHP supports automatic type conversion. It implies that a variable is changed based on its context. For instance, if you perform an arithmetic operation on a string, then PHP will convert the string to its appropriate numeric type for calculation. If the string starts with one or more numeric characters, then the remainder of the string is ignored. And if the string begins with a non-numeric character, it will be evaluated to 0.

In the above statement, “15%” evaluates to the numeric value 15 and “$25” evaluates to the numeric value 0. Hence, 3 + 15 + 0 = 18.

What is PEAR in PHP?

PHP Extension and Application Repository or PEAR is a framework and repository for reusable PHP components. It is a collection of many PHP code snippets and libraries and supports CLI or command-line interface to install packages automatically.

What does the following code print?

$a = “PHP”;
$a = $a + 1;
echo $a;

The code will echo the number 1.

However, in PHP 7.2 record will throw a warning as the version of PHP will not convert the non-numeric value to int.

What are Traits?

PHP does not support multiple inheritances. Traits are a mechanism to provide some of the reuse advantages of multiple inheritances in PHP. Developers can use traits to reuse combinations of methods from different class hierarchies.

How does JavaScript interact with PHP?

PHP is a server-side scripting language, while JavaScript is a client-side programming language. PHP can generate JavaScript variables, making it possible to execute the code in a browser efficiently. It makes it possible to pass JS variables to PHP using a simple URL.

Here is an erroneous code-

$referenceTable = array();
$referenceTable[‘val1’] = array(1, 2);
$referenceTable[‘val2’] = 3;
$referenceTable[‘val3’] = array(4, 5);

$testArray = array();

$testArray = array_merge($testArray, $referenceTable[‘val1’]);
var_dump($testArray);
$testArray = array_merge($testArray, $referenceTable[‘val2’]);
var_dump($testArray);
$testArray = array_merge($testArray, $referenceTable[‘val3’]);
var_dump($testArray);

Explain what is wrong with this code and what the output will be.
Also, how will you fix the error?

The output of this code snipped will be:
array(2) { [0]=> int(1) [1]=> int(2) }
NULL
NULL
It can also generate two warnings, similar to the following:
Warning: array_merge(): Argument #2 is not an array
Warning: array_merge(): Argument #1 is not an array

The issue with the code here is that if either of the first or second arguments to array_merge() is not an array, the return value will be NULL.
Most developers miss this because it is not well described in the PHP documentation.

This is why the call to:

$testArray = array_merge($testArray, $referenceTable[‘val2’])
evaluates to $testArray = array_merge($testArray, 3). However, 3 is not of type array, as a result this call returns NULL. This in turn sets $testArray equal to NULL. In the next call to array_merge(), $testArray is NULL so array_merge() again returns NULL.

The fix here is relatively straightforward. We can simply typecast the second argument to an array to get the desired results.

Here’s the corrected code:

$testArray = array_merge($testArray, (array)$referenceTable[‘val1’]);
var_dump($testArray);
$testArray = array_merge($testArray, (array)$referenceTable[‘val2’]);
var_dump($testArray);
$testArray = array_merge($testArray, (array)$referenceTable[‘val3’]);
var_dump($testArray);

The final output of the code will be:

array(2) { [0]=> int(1) [1]=> int(2) }
array(3) { [0]=> int(1) [1]=> int(2) [2]=> int(3) }
array(5) { [0]=> int(1) [1]=> int(2) [2]=> int(3) [3]=> int(4) [4]=> int(5) }

Free Online Assessments

PHP developers can utilize the following resources to sharpen their concepts and understanding of tools to crack advanced-level PHP interviews easily.

TutorialPoint PHP Test

Multisoft Systems PHP Assessment Test

Testdome PHP Assessment Course

Conclusion

PHP developers will remain high in demand as the language evolves to accommodate the changing requirements of web development. We hope this guide will serve as a complete resource to prepare for advanced-level PHP interviews.

Talent500 has a pool of competent Indian developers. Sign up today and become ready for career-redefining opportunities at fast-growing startups and Fortune500 companies.

The Importance of design skills for frontend development

Posted on October 31, 2022November 8, 2022 by venkatesh

A good frontend developer understands the complex requirements of creating truly attention-capturing web designs. Simply gluing together HTML, CSS, and JavaScript code might make a working website or web app, but it won’t help create designs that communicate with the users.

A competent frontend engineer knows that harmonizing visuals and content requires non-technical skills. If the ‘harmonious’ part seems sophisticated, it is not. With an understanding of some essential design concepts, frontend developers can improve their design skills.

Let’s start with the concepts of design important for frontend development first.

The principles of design

You do not need to have an innate artistic ability to become a talented frontend developer; knowing design fundamentals is adequate. Understanding the design principles will make the difference between recreating a design you see and building unique and calculated designs from scratch.

The essentials of visual design principles are entirely rooted in Gestalt Psychology, the foundation of the modern study of perception. The same fundamentals form the foundation of web and graphics design. While a vast domain, here is the three fundamental principles of design you must know:

Emergence: It is the practice of seeing an arrangement of objects as a whole rather than focusing on individual parts. Emergence helps front-end developers identify asymmetry when a piece breaks a pattern.

Reification: It helps practice restraint in web designs. Reification is the practice of using only essential parts of an object to convey the meaning.

Invariance: It is the ability to include tasteful discordance in web designs and make an object stand out from a group of similar things. Designers use invariance to highlight parts of a design.

Typography

Typography shapes the perception of ideas when people look at them. Everything from a type’s weight to its geometry communicates meaning. As a front-end developer, you must understand how to make typographical choices to deliver the message in the best way.

Frontend developers have many resources to keep on top of typography trends. Font Reach is one such website. Good designers always understand the difference between type styles and how to use them.

Color Theory

Frontend developers should understand combining primary colors to create new color palettes. But effective web design requires a bit more. As a frontend designer, you should be familiar with the concept of the color wheel. You should know how complementary, contrasting, and analogous colors work together.

Knowledge of color theory helps frontend developers avoid common mistakes like the use of clashing colors. You should take the guesswork out of your designs and stop wasting time with a trial-and-error approach. Here is an excellent resource to learn color theory. Now that underlying concepts of practical and unique web designs are there, we must also provide tips on learning them.

Practice is the key

There is no alternative, the only way you will get better is by creating projects to bring your design ideas to life. Fortunately, plenty of resources such as Behance, Dribbble, and even Pinterest can serve as a source of inspiration for your next design. Keep in mind that you are exploring these websites for ideas and not to ‘steal’ things. You can start with a similar design or pattern that you saw, but as you iterate your project, introduce new colors, move objects, and try different compositions to transform it into something new.

Communication is mandatory

Being curious, asking questions, and respecting feedback will make you an excellent designer. It can be tricky to comprehend why communication can be an essential design skill for a front-end developer. Designing is a form of visual communication. For instance, when you put an element in the corner of a design, you tell the users that there is some action to be taken here.

Frontend developers build on top of the code written by backend developers. To integrate the backend functionalities seamlessly into the frontend design, you must communicate with other developers effectively. As part of a team, you can use communication to anticipate any design challenges that might come up during future development and deploy solutions proactively.

Tools come in handy

You do not have to practice on whiteboards; some great tools help you save time and increase efficiency. Adobe Creative Libraries is a fantastic tool for front-end developers to create unique elements that they can use for web pages, apps, and applications. Codepen.io is another excellent tool that helps front-end developers create UI elements in a live environment to see how things will look.

Conclusion

Frontend development lies at the intersection of technology, design, and communication. You can start by implementing the ideas of other great designers into your projects. With each iteration, introduce your elements in the design, and soon enough, you will be creating strategically calculated and unique web designs on your own.
Talent500 helps front-end developers find the best opportunities with global companies. Join our elite pool of talent to get discovered by the best.

5 effective JavaScript debugging techniques

Posted on October 31, 2022October 31, 2022 by saurabh kale

JavaScript is the web language used by over 90% of websites. Still, it has a reputation of being difficult to debug. JavaScript’s asynchronous nature makes it easy for developers to create complex web applications, but the same attribute makes it challenging to locate errors. Fortunately, knowing the right tools and understanding a few debugging tricks can make it easier to resolve bugs and errors.

Here we have put together a list of practical JavaScript debugging techniques you should keep in mind.

Use debugger

For many JavaScript developers, the debugger is their favorite debugging tool. When writing extensive code with complex logic, experienced programmers place a debugger in the code line that they anticipate will produce an error. When such code is run in Chrome, the Developer Tool will automatically stop when it encounters a debugger keyword.

You can also wrap the debugger in conditions to run them in a particular event like this:

if (thisThing) {
debugger;}
Learn more about debugger keywords here.

Learn to use the console.trace

JavaScript has many frameworks such as Node.js, Vue.js, and React. These frameworks make it easy to produce code quickly. In a project, you will have many views, triggers, and too many events. When working with a framework, most of these events will be hidden in an abstract layer, so it will be challenging to identify what caused a particular function call.

JavaScript is not very structured, and it is hard to get a clear overview of what happened and when. This is why JavaScript developers should use the console.trace method.

Let’s assume in the following code, you want to see the entire stack trace for the function call funcZ:

var car;
var func1 = function() {
func2();
}

var func2 = function() {
func4();
}
var func3 = function() {
}

var func4 = function() {
car = new Car();
car.funcX();
}
var Car = function() {
this.brand = ‘volvo’;
this.color = ‘red’;
this.funcX = function() {
this.funcY();
}

   this.funcY = function() {
           this.funcZ();
   }

   this.funcZ = function() {
           console.trace(‘trace car’)
   }

}
func1();
var car;
var func1 = function() {
func2();
}
var func2 = function() {
func4();
}
var func3 = function() {
}
var func4 = function() {
car = new Car();
car.funcX();
}
var Car = function() {
this.brand = ‘volvo’;
this.color = ‘red’;
this.funcX = function() {
this.funcY();
}
this.funcY = function() {
this.funcZ();
}
this.funcZ = function() {
console.trace(‘trace car’)
}
}
func1();

This will be the output at Line 33:

As you can see that the trace clearly indicates func1 called func2, which is further called func4. Then the func4 created an instance of variable Car calling the function car.funcX, and so on. This is a simple script, so it is easier to follow through the flow, but when the code block is a big console.trace method proves to be handy. You can easily trace all related functions to pinpoint the bug.

Use console.time() and console.timeEnd() to benchmark loops

Not just JavaScript, but loops are trouble makers in every programming language. To create efficient and fast code, developers need to know how long any code segment takes to execute. Slow loops can degrade the performance of the entire JavaScript code.

But you can benchmark loops to evaluate their performance. Here is a way to set up multiple timers using console.time() and console.timeEnd() methods.

console.time(‘Timer1’);

var items = [];

for(var i = 0; i < 100000; i++){

items.push({index: i});
}

console.timeEnd(‘Timer1’);

The output will be:

As evident, benchmarking loops in JavaScript can help you save time trying to troubleshoot performance issues.

Chrome Developer Tool for responsive test

As most web applications are accessed through multiple devices, you have to make sure your JavaScript code works on all screen sizes. In an ideal world, developers would have every single device check the compatibility of their code. Unfortunately, in the real world, it is not feasible.

Chrome Developer Tool has the option to resize the viewport to check your code’s performance on any screen size. To use this feature, open the inspector in Chrome and click on the toggle device mode button as highlighted in the image:

Using this tool, you can instantly check the media queries, forms, and dynamic code for various screen sizes.

Black box scripts for faster debugging

Modern web applications use libraries and frameworks that are tested for bugs. But when you run any debugger tool, it will still check and try to debug all files, even those that have no relevance. It substantially increases the cost of debugging and takes longer too.

The solution lies in black-boxing the scripts you don’t need to debug. Fortunately, both Chrome and Firefox provide the option to blacklist scripts that you don’t want to debug.

In Chrome, open the inspector and right-click the JavaScript file you want to blacklist, and choose ‘black box script.’ You can learn more about Chrome Script Black Box here.

In Firefox, go to the debugger tab in the element inspector. Mark the scripts you want to blacklist, then click on the eye at the bottom-left corner. Learn more here.

Conclusion

Debugging is an active responsibility of developers. Its unstructured design makes it challenging to identify and resolve errors with JavaScript. The techniques shared above will help you create JavaScript debugging more efficiently.

Talent500 is one of the best platforms for developers to find remote work opportunities. Join us today to be discovered by the best companies.

Top 6 mistakes made by Javascript developers

Posted on October 10, 2022November 10, 2022 by venkatesh

JavaScript is an essential technology for front-end development. Websites, mobile applications, and even smart devices use this language. There are several benefits of using JavaScript for development. Websites built in this language are highly responsive, making them accessible on any screen. For mobile applications, JavaScript offers flexibility to integrate complex functionalities.

Furthermore, hundreds of advanced JavaScript frameworks, libraries, and development tools can benefit the developers. JavaScript is an essential language for web developers. While it is relatively simple, JavaScript developers must be aware of some language pitfalls. This article will detail the top 6 mistakes made by JavaScript developers.

1. Incorrect references to ‘this’ keyword

One of the most common JavaScript mistakes is the keyword ‘this.’ Many developers wonder if the ‘this’ JavaScript keyword has the same literal meaning or is something else entirely. As JavaScript has grown sophisticated over the years, several self-referencing scopes within callbacks and closures are introduced into the language. The confusion around this/that keywords is better understood from this example:

Game.prototype.restart = function () {

this.clearLocalStorage();

this.timer = setTimeout(function() {

this.clearBoard(); // what is “this”?

}, 0);

};

Running the above code will result in ‘Uncaught TypeError: undefined is not a function error.

In the above code example, the ‘this’ keyword is used to invoke setTimeout(), but it is invoking window.setTimeout(). This is causing the anonymous function using the setTimeout() to be associated with the window object without any clearBoard() method.

A conventional solution experienced JavaScript programmers use to avoid this mistake is to use the ‘this’ keyword regarding a variable; the closure can inherit that. Here’s how:

Game.prototype.restart = function () {

this.clearLocalStorage();

var self = this; // save reference to ‘this’, while it’s still this!

this.timer = setTimeout(function(){

self.clearBoard(); // oh OK, I do know who ‘self’ is!

}, 0);

};

2. Using magic values

Not only in JavaScript but using magic values is a common malpractice in many programming languages.

A magic value is a constant value that abruptly appears within the JavaScript code, only the developer who wrote the code knows why it is there.

This makes JavaScript code unmaintainable as no one can understand what that random value represents; even sometimes, the coder who added the value cannot recall the reason.

For instance, check out this code excerpt:

const specialFn = (r) =>{

const fnValue= 2*3.1416*r // no idea why this value is used

return fnValue

}

console.log(specialFn(4))

How the code should be:

const PI = 3.1416

const specialFn = (r) =>{

const fnValue = 2*PI*r // Calculation for circumference

return fnValue

}

console.log(specialFn(4))

This practice must be followed with all methods, functions, variables, and values.

3. Not “static typing” JavaScript code

A JavaScript developer should write Static Typed code. A type is a syntax format to write JavaScript code with predefined syntax, hierarchy, and structure.

Typescript is one of JavaScript’s most popular static typing styles to help programmers write maintainable and quality code. Typescript is a superset of JavaScript, implying it is JavaScript but with some added syntax features.

When you write static-type JavaScript code, you can easily avoid some of the most common typos and syntax errors.

4. Assuming JavaScript has block-level scope

A beginner JavaScript developer can think that the language creates a new scope for each block of code, but it is simply not true. While many other programming languages like Python and Java have this functionality, JavaScript does not offer block-level scope.

For instance, in this code block:

for (var i = 0; i < 10; i++) {

/* … */

}

console.log(i);

What do you assume will be the output here?

The code will not throw an error or undefined output but will return 10.

Why?

In most other languages, this code block will throw an error because the scope of variable ‘i’ would be only within the for loop block. But in JavaScript, there is no such restriction and the variable ‘i’ remains in scope outside the for loop.

5. Anomalous behavior of Boolean Functions

One of the advantages of JavaScript is that it automatically coerces any value referenced in a Boolean context into a Boolean value. But this convenience comes at a cost for JavaScript developers. Let’s see how.

// All these statements are True

console.log(false == ‘0’);

console.log(null == undefined);

console.log(” \t\r\n” == 0);

console.log(” == 0);

// And these do too

if ({}) // …

if ([]) // …

But the last two statements are empty, which any developer will intuitively think to return false, but as both {} and [] are coerced to a Boolean value in JavaScript, they will return True.

6. Not using “strict mode”

The “strict mode” in JavaScript is voluntary to ensure better quality code by enforcing stricter parsing and error handling. It also makes the code more secure. While not using strict mode is not a “mistake” per se, it is a practice that makes you a better JavaScript developer.

The strict mode JavaScript code prevents accidental globals, makes debugging more manageable, and makes eval() safer.

Conclusion

Being a proficient JavaScript developer is not only about learning the language’s concepts but also about being familiar with the common mistakes and best practices. It helps write concise and quality JavaScript code.

Talent500 is a platform for JavaScript developers to get career redefining opportunities with some of the best companies. Join us here.

5 most commonly found types of bugs and how to fix them

Posted on October 10, 2022October 10, 2022 by vallish

The software development life cycle (SDLC) has several stages that include testing. No code is ever written with perfection when first created. Bugs, errors, and anomalies repeatedly occur, so companies perform a comprehensive software assessment to maintain its quality.

But what happens when bugs are not identified early on during the software development?

The cost of fixing bugs and security issues increases with each development stage. It is least expensive to correct errors and anomalies in the design phase. According to a study by the Systems Sciences Institute at IBM, fixing a bug during implementation costs 6x higher than fixing it during the design phase. Furthermore, the study found that companies waiting to fix bugs during the Testing phase of SDLC could end up paying 15 times more compared to the cost of recording and resolving bugs during the design and development phase.

Competent QA engineers understand that to fix bugs early stage, it is essential to know the most common errors that occur. It helps to understand what kind of bugs popup during which phase of project development.

To save time and cost invested in testing, here are the most common software bugs that developers and QA engineers often encounter. Pay attention as soon as you identify them because that is the best way to tackle them effectively.

1. Functional Bugs

The errors associated with the functionality of a specific software component are called functional bugs. A non-responsive Login Button or an erroneous Cart function is functional bugs as they don’t function as intended.

It can be costly to fix these issues if they appear in actual use conditions. Functional testing help testers evaluate a website or app in a live environment early on rather than discovering them in the production environment.

2. Logical Bugs

Nothing can be more complicated to troubleshoot than a poorly constructed logic. Logical bugs cause the software to malfunction, disrupting the entire application. How devastating the effects of logical bugs can be was evident when NASA lost its Mars Probe spacecraft in 1999 because engineers in the software team forgot to convert British measurements into American units.

While most software projects won’t be of such scale or involve millions of dollars worth of space vehicles, logical bugs can be challenging to track. Fuzzy testing is a common approach for identifying logical bugs. During this testing, malformed inputs are sent to a code block to expose infinite loops, memory leaks, and crashes.

3. Workflow Bugs

Workflow bugs are associated with the navigation of a software application.

For example, consider a payment function that involves several steps. Users can switch between pages with ‘next’ and ‘previous’ buttons to complete the process. But if the ‘next’ navigation exits the process, the workflow is broken, resulting in a bug.

Fortunately, workflow bugs are the easiest to identify as they are much more apparent. Manual testing is enough to find most workflow bugs.

Unit Level Bugs

Unit level bugs are pretty common and easier to fix. As each software module is in written form, testers can test small batches of code to ensure they are functioning as expected. Unit testing helps developers capture bugs that are left undetected during coding. Before moving to the next component, the bugs are isolated and fixed.

For instance, when working on a signup page, a developer can verify all the user input fields and validation buttons. If a field does not accept input or the validation is not working correctly, that will be a unit-level bug.

4. System-Level Integration Bugs

These bugs are in one word: miscommunication. System-level integration bugs occur when two or more units created by different developers are integrated. These bugs stop different units from interacting due to inconsistencies or incompatibility.

System-level integration bugs are hard to track and even harder to fix as developers need to examine thousands of lines of code. Inappropriate interfacing, memory overflow issues, and database connectivity issues are common system-level integration bugs.

5. Out of Bound Bugs

When a system user interacts with the UI of an application or website unintentionally, out-of-bound bugs occur. Entering a too large or too small value in an input field or using an undefined data type are expected out of bound bugs. Form validation issues that pop up during functional testing are examples of such errors.

Conclusion

For any website or mobile application to be helpful for the end-users in the real-world environment, it needs comprehensively testing for the most common bugs. Regardless of the software complexity and size, testers and developers must ensure that most bugs are identified and resolved early as possible. Fixing bugs at the later stages of software development proves to be costly and time-consuming.
Talent500 is the platform for Quality Assurance engineers to find opportunities with global companies. Join our elite pool of software testers found by fast-growing startups and Fortune500 companies.

6 useful Python tools for developers in 2022

Posted on September 28, 2022 by

Developers prefer Python because of its versatility, usage, and ease of access. In the software industry, it is one of the frequently used programming languages across several disciplines, such as data science, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and mathematical computation.

To get the most out of this programming language, developers must know the most helpful Python tools. We are listing handpicked tools for Python developers that can enhance their software development lifecycle skills.

1. PyCharm IDE

Every developer has their favorite Integrated Development Environment or IDE. However, if you are writing code in Python, you will be most productive when using PyCharm IDE. It is developed by JetBrains which is one of the best companies in creating IDEs for many different programming languages and not just Python.

This Python IDE is essentially the best code editor for Python developers out there. It lets you code much more efficiently due to its autocomplete feature that suggests all available keywords in Python. It also highlights any typo or missing syntax or keyword within your code. Also, it is effortless to install Python libraries in PyCharm, further extending its scope.

2. Pip Package

The robustness of Python is due to the availability of hundreds of open-source packages that you can use to customize its application for a particular field. Installing the Python packages can be tedious, which is why you can take the help of an intelligent tool called Pip.

Pip is one of the most widely used Python tools that allows developers to install any Python package with a single command line. It is highly beneficial when you are working on a project and want to import a package while writing code; you can easily do it using Pip. Just type the command – Pip package name to install the package without ever leaving the IDE. It helps to keep the productivity of Python developers high.

3. Scikit-Learn

To use Python for data science or machine learning applications, you must familiarize yourself with the Scikit-Learn tool. It is an open-source Python tool that can perform data mining and analysis at speed. Most developers and data scientists use Scikit-Learn to benchmark sample datasets, given its efficiency, accuracy, and speed. You can install this Python library in the PyCharm IDE. Some of the essential features included in Scikit-Learn are classification, clustering, regression, dimensionality reduction, model selection, and preprocessing.

4. Sphinx

The open-source community greatly influences Python and the developers often create their Python packages and let other developers use them through GitHub or other code-sharing platforms. One of the requirements of making your packages is to document the code such that others can use it. Python has a solution for this too. Sphinx is a Python tool that can generate documentation for your code automatically.

Sphinx can generate program documentation through your terminal or Windows CMD. It will ask you questions about the code, what it does, the release date, etc., and based on the information, it will create documentation. You can publish the document as an HTML file or can download its PDF file.

5. Selenium

Most developers and testers use Selenium. It is one of the best Python tools for automation testing, which is used in the software industry for all kinds of software development projects. Selenium is an open-source Python framework that you must learn to automate web applications through scripts. This tool can run scripts in several programming languages, including Python, Java, Ruby, Perl, C#, and .Net.

Every developer must have this Python tool on their list. With Selenium, you can automate web applications for any browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, or Internet Explorer). It also works on all major operating systems and can be integrated with testing tools like TestNG and JUnit.

6. LXML

If you are working with a C project for machine learning, then you can use this Python tool to work with libxml2 and libxslt libraries. It is one of the most feature-rich Python tools designed for C developers that provides them easy access to the functionalities of the libxml2 and libxslt libraries through the ElementTree API. At the same time, several other tools offer the same functionality, LXML, distinct because it combines the XML capabilities with the speed and simplicity of the native Python API. This allows developers to code faster by extending the scope of the ElementTree API by adding support for XPath, RelaxNG, C14N, XML Schema, and XSLT.

Conclusion

You must be familiar with these Python tools if you are a beginner or intermediate Python developer. These tools can help you write Python code more efficiently and save time by installing and updating packages.

Talent500 helps Python developers find career redefining opportunities with Fortune 500 companies and fast-growing startups. Sign up here to know more.

PHP developer toolkit: Important skills, learning resources, interview prep & more

Posted on August 9, 2022August 9, 2022 by

PHP is a popular backend programming language empowering the web since it first appeared in 1995. Today, 77.4% of all websites use PHP as the server-side programming language. You are in good company as a PHP developer as millions of backend developers use the programming language in their tech stack.

This toolkit will list the ultimate resources to be a skilled and job-ready PHP developer.

HTML, CSS, and JavaScript: In addition to PHP, a developer is also expected to have a working knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. PHP is combined with frontend technologies to create web applications as a backend language. To fully utilize the benefits PHP offers as a general-purpose server-side scripting language, developers must be proficient in writing quality JavaScript code with HTML and CSS.

Advanced PHP Concepts: Any PHP project developed for web services uses many third-party web applications. A competent PHP developer should be familiar with advanced concepts, most importantly, parsing JSON, handling HTTP requests, using XML, and working with package installers like the composer.

Composer is an important concept to learn as it helps PHP developers to manage dependencies like classes, functions, and libraries conveniently. Also, developers can effortlessly switch between different versions of PHP using composer.

PSR (PHP Standard Recommendation), issued by PHP-FIG, is a PHP specification that developers should know. Knowledge of PSR is essential to standardize PHP code that enhances the interoperability of PHP components and frameworks.

Laravel: PHP developers seldom work on raw PHP code when building web applications. You will be utilizing PHP frameworks like Laravel to increase the productivity and accuracy of your code. While there are several PHP frameworks such as CodeIgniter, Symphony, and CakePHP, Laravel is the most widely used. Over 67% of PHP developers use Laravel for building web applications.

Databases: Web applications use several databases depending on the nature and type of data they deal with. PHP developers use PHP code to create, update and maintain databases in web applications. MySQL, MariaDB, and MongoDB are the three most widely used databases for PHP applications. Companies hiring PHP developers expect programmers to be skilled in one of these databases.

Web servers: PHP is primarily a server-side scripting language, and knowledge of web servers will help PHP developers with full-stack programming. Employers prefer PHP developers who know web servers as they can create faster and more scalable web applications.

Top 40 PHP Interview Questions and Answers in 2022 – [Fresher to Experienced]

21 Essential PHP Interview Questions

How to land a high paying backend developer job

Backend developer: interview preparation resources

Essential Interview Questions For Backend Developers With 1-3 Years Of Experience

Official Resources

PHP Manual

PHP official community

PHP Git Repository

PHP Wiki

Online Courses & Tutorials

KillerPHP is an excellent resource for PHP developers that have been around since 2010. The site has insightful blogs, videos, and short tutorials.

PHPtherightway.com is the best PHP documentation; some developers find it more comprehensive than official PHP documentation.

Packagist.org is a resource that every PHP developer should bookmark. The website has information on every open-source composer package. The website also integrates with GitHub well, so developers can easily install, create, and publish new packages.

Learn PHP with Codeacademy is a free resource that teaches PHP coding from scratch without being distracting. The lessons are interactive sessions, rather than just video or text tutorials. It is a self-guided PHP college course with articles, quizzes, and freeform projects.

Build a Social Network from Scratch is a Udemy course to learn the features and concepts of PHP through a project-based approach. Developers build a social networking site in PHP, JavaScript, and MySQL in this course.

PHP with Laravel for beginners is another quality Udemy online course to learn the Laravel framework. It teaches the best practice of creating PHP web applications using Laravel.

Object-Oriented PHP & MVC by Brad Traversy is a course for advanced learners as it dives deeper into PHP concepts. This course teaches you to create a basic framework using PHP, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. Then you build an application based on that framework.

Books for PHP Developers

The Joy of PHP Programming: A Beginner’s Guide – by Alan Forbes

PHP & MySQL Novice to Ninja – by Kevin Yank

Headfirst PHP & MySQL (A Brain-friendly Guide)

PHP for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide

Modern PHP: New Features and Good Practices

Online Communities for PHP Developers

PHP Dev Community

PHP Forum

Webdev Subreddit

Laracasts- Official Laravel Community

Laravel.io

Podcasts for PHP Developers

PHP Arch Podcast

PHP Internal News

PHP Podcasts | The voice of the elePHPant

Soft skills for PHP Developers

Good Communication Skills: Communication is the key to projects’ success, and PHP is no exception. Basic communication etiquettes are a must for PHP developers, whether they work solo or as a team. It would be best to learn to communicate like a professional to land jobs easily.

Project Management: Managing programming projects is an essential skill that PHP developers should nurture to independently track and complete PHP tasks. Leadership, delegation, risk management, and quality management are part of project management skills.

Critical Thinking: Developers who are critical thinkers are better at application planning and design. They are also more efficient in debugging project code as they can critically analyze it. Furthermore, critical thinking makes PHP developers adapt to innovations and technologies quickly.

There is more to explore; here are some soft skill development resources from Talent500:

How soft skills transitioned to become the new power skills

6 soft skills that still impress employers in 2022

7 Most valuable soft skills of exceptional software engineers

Conclusion

PHP is a popular language for building web applications that over 80% of websites utilize. From creating custom websites to entire Content Management Systems, you can achieve a lot with PHP if you have the right skills. This PHP toolkit is the ultimate resource guide to learning and upskilling as a PHP developer.

Talent500 has the pool of elite PHP developers that global companies hire to build their remote teams. Join our platform today to find career-redefining opportunities.

Golang developer toolkit: Important skills, learning resources, interview prep & more

Posted on August 9, 2022August 9, 2022 by

Google first introduced the Go programming language, popularly known as Golang, in 2009. The open-source programming language is famous for its efficiency, simplicity, and tooling. Even though Go is comparatively new, it is already the 10th most popular programming language, according to the latest Stack Overflow developer survey. Most developers create in Golang because it helps them deploy applications with fewer servers saving them cost, and its simplicity and familiarity make it easier to learn.

We have created this Golang toolkit as a complete resource directory for beginners and experienced developers.

Expertise with Goroutines: Goroutine is a function that can execute independently yet connected with other Goroutines within the program.

According to Ben Popper, the Content Head at Stack Overflow, Goroutines are the “worth the price of admission alone” for the Go language. With Goroutines, you can create multithreaded programs. Go developers need to make their programs fast and efficient. With Goroutines, you can make your program continue execution even if one task is stuck.

This is a non-negotiable area of expertise that companies look for in any Go developer.

Go Channels: These are the medium used by Goroutines to communicate and share data. It is an essential mechanism for Go developers to learn. You will use Go Channels in your program to synchronize any data exchange between two Goroutines.

This prominent feature makes Golang better because most programming languages that allow concurrent threads to share data lock that data, creating several issues with memory management. Go overcomes this problem by allowing data to be sent via Go channels, with both threads ‘waiting’ until the variable value reaches its destination.

Companies want Go developers to be familiar with Go channel types (buffered and unbuffered) and the most common concurrency patterns and frameworks.

Godoc commenting: Comments in Go can go beyond just basic information, unlike most programming languages. You should be aware of godoc: Go’s built-in documentation tool.

With Godoc you can scan any Go source code for commands and compile them together to form the package’s documentation as an HTML page or plain text. No other programming language offers such an effective documentation tool out of the box.

Go templates: This simple template language allows customizing outputs from the code in different formats such as web pages, emails, and forms. You should be familiar with two template packages—text/template and HTML/template. These templates are used to produce text files and HTML pages depending on the project’s requirement.

Versioning tools: Any developer should know versioning tools. It is not a skill strictly related to Go but to software development overall. Git is the most popular version control tool that most companies use. It works with Golang code as well.

Top 25 Topics and Resources to Crack Golang Developer Interviews in 2022

Golang Interview Questions (Freshers to Experienced)

Crack the top 50 Golang interview questions

Top 20 GO Programming / Golang Interview Questions & Answers

7 Common full stack developer interview questions

Full Stack developer interview preparation resources

11 Top full-stack developer interview questions

Official resources

The Go Programming Language Blog

Go community Wiki

Online courses & tutorials

Learn Golang at Tour of Go: A good starting point to learn about Go.

Go by Example: You should bookmark this website. It will be a great resource to refer to when you want to understand any concept of the Go with code snippets.

Learn How To Code: Google’s Go (golang) Programming Language: This Udemy course is excellent for learning Go through an entire semester course. This video lecture-based course is a good starting point for learning Golang.

Programming with Google Go Specialization: A comprehensive Coursera online course, it is a good resource for learning Go Interfaces, Functions, and Concurrency.

Go (Golang): The Complete Bootcamp: If you want to learn Go with hands-on practice, this Udemy course is the best. It offers 1000+ exercises and projects to learn Go.

Books for Golang developers

The Go Programming Language by Donovan and Kernighan

Go in Action by Brian Ketelsen, Erik St. Martin, and William Kennedy

Programming in Go by Mark Summerfield

Building Web Applications with Golang

Learning Go by Miek Gieben

Online communities for Golang developers

The Go Forum

Go user groups and meetups

Gophers’ community on Slack

Podcasts for Golang developers

Go Time

JustForFunc

Soft skills for Golang developers

Remote working skills: Apart from technical skills, as a Go developer, you will be benefit from learning work-related skills. Remote working skills have become essential for employers ever since the Covid-19 pandemic. You should be familiar with collaboration tools and have good organization skills and task tracking.

Checkout out this Covid-19 Job Resource Toolkit to learn more.

Communication: Software development depends a lot on high-quality communication. Version control, test design, documentation and the like all depend on clear communication between team members. A competent Go dev must communicate effectively with other developers and stakeholders.

Organization: Organization keeps projects on a strict timeline. When you are organized in your work, you don’t have to deal with backlogs that often, and the quality of your code is high. Companies expect developers to be familiar with Kanban-style applications like Trello, Jira, Asana, etc.

For more, refer to – 8 Project management tools for remote software engineering teams.

Here are some more resources for you to check out:

The importance of leadership transparency and accountability in a hybrid and distributed workplace

6 soft skills that still impress employers in 2022

Conclusion

A competent Go developer can balance technical skills with soft skills to deliver projects on time without compromising quality. We hope that this Golang toolkit will provide a reference for all essential resources to become job-ready.

Talent500 helps Golang developers find the best opportunities. We are a preferred partner of global companies to build remote engineering teams. Join us today and become a vetted Go developer to get hired faster.