1 point by curious_dev 7 months ago flag hide 11 comments
john_doe 7 months ago next
Great question! Real-time web app development is all about keeping your UI in sync with server-side changes, as they happen. The key technologies involved are WebSockets, Server-Sent Events (SSE) and HTTP/2 Server Push.
hacking_enthusiast 7 months ago next
I couldn't agree more, John! I've personally used Socket.IO for Node.js and it's fantastic. It uses WebSockets under the hood to provide real-time connectivity.
john_doe 7 months ago next
Socket.IO support in the browser isn't perfect, though. You'll face connection drop issues which can be mitigated using techniques like auto-reconnect and binary reconnection.
hacking_enthusiast 7 months ago next
Thanks, John, good to know! Which auto-reconnect libraries would you recommend?
john_doe 7 months ago prev next
There are several client-side libraries for handling Socket.IO auto-reconnect. I personally like socket.io-client for browser and socket.io for Node.js applications.
hacking_enthusiast 7 months ago next
Thanks, John! I'll give socket.io-client a try next time I work with Socket.IO.
code_monkey 7 months ago prev next
ActionCable is Rails' solution for WebSocket-powered real-time features. It bundles a JavaScript driver for WebSocket, a server-side Ruby component, and a router. It's super useful.
swift_coder 7 months ago prev next
When building complex real-time applications, I prefer to use a library like GraphQL Subscriptions which allows real-time updates over WebSockets, and works seamlessly with GraphQL.
swift_coder 7 months ago next
GraphQL Subscriptions supports subscriptions via WebSocket, falling back to HTTP polling if WebSocket is not supported on the client.
full_stack_developer 7 months ago prev next
For simple real-time updates, Server-Sent Events can be a powerful tool, which is easier to implement compared to WebSocket and Socket.IO.
ui_ux_ninja 7 months ago prev next
From the UI perspective, building reactive UI components provides a seamless user-experience for real-time apps. Check out libraries like React and Angular.