THE EVOLUTION OF WEB DEVELOPMENT
The world of web development has seen significant changes over the past couple of years. From development tools and new scripting languages to scalable-cloud hosting infrastructures – we’re in an entirely new era of development. With a larger segment of internet users now browsing the internet on their mobile phones or tablets, web pages must effectively cater to a wider audience on a multitude of different devices with security and speed in mind. Let’s take a look at just a few of the biggest changes for 2017.
Cloud Hosting
We’ll start with hosting. Shared hosting, virtual private hosting and even dedicated hosting have quickly become a thing of the past. Developers have grown increasingly weary of fixed contracts, monthly fees and an inability to scale server resources up-and-down depending on needs. The new age offers fully scalable cloud hosting solutions with no contracts – only pay for what you use. At the forefront of innovation are Amazon Web Services and on a smaller scale – Digital Ocean and Linode. Each offer the ability for site administrators to add/remove hard disks, RAM, CPU’s, and bandwidth all at the click of a button and in real-time. These services are not only making development significantly more efficient, they are doing so at a fraction of the cost of traditional hosting solutions.
Mobile Responsiveness and Interactivity
Websites and applications must be compatible across all major browsers on both desktops and mobile devices. HTML5, CSS3, Bootstrap and jQuery have become an essential part of any developer’s arsenal of scripting languages. The Bootstrap grid system makes cross-device compatibility a breeze. Combined with the jQuery library, the possibilities are endless and you are only confined by the limits of your imagination.
Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
Web users are growing increasingly impatient and the thirst for speed continues to grow. Web-page load times, security and deliverability must be optimized to ensure user engagement. The new Ubuntu LTS OS & Apache web server delivers all of the above, plus much more. It’s lightning fast. Undoubtedly faster and more secure than any previous version. It also offers one of the cleanest user interfaces for server administration. The importance of understanding how to navigate your way around this powerful tool cannot be emphasized enough.
Free, Automated, and open SSL Certificate Authority (CA)
Google has already implemented some of the biggest changes yet when it comes to web pages that operate under the standard HTTP protocol. Any web page which requires users to complete form data without HTTPS, will now be red flagged as “Not-Secure”. This comes as a mechanism for Google to force web developers into securing data using SSL certificates. If you have not made this transition on your existing web site, don’t wait another second. With the advent of Let’s Encrypt, installing SSL certificates couldn’t be easier. Best of all, they are absolutely free. No more complex installation issues and costly annual renewal fees.
