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Front end developers are responsible for creating the look and feel of a website and the user experience. They’re responsible for ensuring that your product is easy to navigate and runs smoothly across multiple devices. With new technologies like HTML5, CSS3, and Bootstrap, front end developers can create interactive web applications that look and feel like native apps. Front end developers also have a crucial role in today’s fast paced digital marketing industry. They can do so much more than just coding a website.
As companies have shifted more of their attention online, the demand for front end development skills in the job market has grown swiftly. The reason is simple: those skills are instrumental to a wide range of web-related jobs, including app development, web integration, and web design. Because customers want to access websites and apps that are fast, responsive, and easy to use, businesses in almost every industry — from healthcare to education to financial services — seek out great front end developers who can make their user experience a winning one.
Front end developer roles are also among the best paying jobs in software engineering in the US. According to Glassdoor, a front end developer in the United States can earn an average of $87,000 per year. Below are some of the most important technical skills that you should learn if you plan to excel in front end development.
1. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
These languages are the three foundational building blocks of every website available. As a front end developer, you’ll use programming languages, which instruct computers on how to display content, retrieve information, and respond to user input. Every website is built via an array of interlocking instructions and languages that direct the visual experience and every user interaction.
HTML provides the basic structure for websites everywhere. CSS, on the other hand, is used to construct a website’s layout, format, and design. HTML builds the structural underpinnings of a website, while CSS gives it its appearance and design.
JavaScript, a dynamic scripting language, allows you to make websites interactive and build mobile apps. JavaScript is a lightweight programming language that interacts with Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). This capability helps front end developers create complex interactions quickly and simply on their websites, thereby providing an ideal user experience.
HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are different languages, but they are often linked together as the core front end development skills you need to begin creating great sites.
2. React
React is a JavaScript library that enables front end developers to build user interfaces. React library allows for fast, dynamic, and user-friendly adaptations, or reactions, based on how a user interacts with the website. There are several JavaScript technologies that you may use as a front end developer, but React is highly popular because it can use JavaScript to create HTML, rather than enhancing and refining HTML that already exists.
React is particularly helpful for developing applications that live on the web but work like full-featured desktop programs. Consider advanced webmail programs like Gmail or mapping software like Google Maps. These load within one single webpage but are continually changing for instant interaction and feedback. Websites that offer single-page applications often rely on React for a smooth user experience and fast, seamless responses.
3. Debugging
Debugging is an essential skill because it’s the process of finding and fixing mistakes in source code. Many people think that if their code runs without any visible errors, it means it is error-free. But in fact, there can be hidden bugs in your program that only show up at run-time (that is when the program runs) and cause problems.
Use breakpoints in browsers. Browsers’ developer tools allow you to set breakpoints. When the browser hits a break point, it pauses before executing the line of code that caused the break point to be triggered, allowing for investigation of what is happening then or execution of other statements before resuming normal execution. Breakpoints are typically used when there’s a problem with page layout or rendering, but they can also be used for general problem-solving. For example, you can put a break point on a function call and step through the code as it executes to see what is happening.
4. Assets Management
The best assets management skills are essential for your front-end developers because they allow them to view the site as a whole and make changes that won’t affect the rest of the project. This way, they can focus on design and functionality without worrying about inconsistencies between CSS, images and HTML. Front-end developers are often asked to manage assets such as images and fonts as part of their job.
5. Implementing design patterns in code
Front-end developers love to play with new technology, and one of the most popular things to do is to explore and implement new design patterns. Design patterns are reusable solutions to common problems. They help in extracting common logic from projects, make our code more maintainable and easier to reuse.
By nature of their job, front-end developers are expected to be well-versed in design patterns. They know that not every project needs the same set of functionality, so they should read through a spec and advice on what should be included in the project. Skilled front-end developers are also able to implement design patterns within applications.
6. Extract libraries for scoped CSS
It’s excellent to scope your CSS using classes or element IDs, but there are many times where you’ll need to use element type or attributes. For instance, you might want to target all anchors that look like buttons or all images next to each other. More than likely, you’ll be doing this manually by adding a class name to the tag. But if you’re still coding in some text editor, this will get old fast. CSS preprocessors allow us to turn any stylesheet into a program – and we can run it through a compiler at build time and generate clean and maintainable CSS.
Future of Front End Developers
The latest studies predict that by 2023, there will be a deficit of approximately 1 million developers in the United States.
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, Web developer employment in the US is projected to grow 15% from 2016 to 2026. The rate is much faster than the average for all other occupations.
Although these numbers seem incredible, if you pause and consider the times, it’s not so surprising. Increased Internet usage, especially in the mobile field, means a greater need for user interfaces, which in turn means more front end developer jobs. Web development is a field whose potential is tied closely to the Internet’s popularity, and the latter is surging with no signs of letting up. If you want to go where the jobs are, then look no further.
