I sometimes take some things for granted as a developer, and one of those things is software frameworks. I am able to complete very complex websites and apps, even working alone, all because of the frameworks I use, to achieve what would be an otherwise difficult undertaking.
So, what is a software framework? Software frameworks can be defined in a broad context as including support programs, compilers, code libraries, tool sets, and application programming interfaces (API), that bring together all the different components, to enable the development of a project or system.
However, for the focus of this blog, software frameworks narrows the definition to include software written to provide generic functionality, which can be selectively changed by additional user-written code, thus providing application-specific software.
Frameworks provide a standard way to build and deploy applications, and also provide a universal, reusable software environment that provides particular functionality, as part of a larger software platform, in order to facilitate the development of software applications, products and solutions.
The framework is often written as an abstraction: a separation from the core programming language. Take Laravel, the PHP framework that I rely on for web apps, it allows me to develop with the framework, which is more fluent when compared to working directly in the PHP programming language.
Like I mentioned, frameworks typically abstract the underlying programming language. In the case of Laravel, it means working with the Laravel Framework, together with some PHP, instead of working directly with PHP all the time.
The framework provides consistent guidelines on the paradigms to use in developing the software. Again in the case of Laravel, it provides a popular software development paradigm known as Model View Controller (MVC), which helps in the separation of concerns.
The framework sits at a higher level, in terms of programming language complexity, which in turn allows the developer to use high-level syntax, in order to perform common actions. If a developer is working from the low-level language, everything would have to be coded from scratch, and often there is a lot of code duplication and repetition involved.
The result of adopting a framework is large gains in speed during development. There is, of course, the initial overhead of having to learn the framework, but once that is done, software development speed can be increased significantly in subsequent projects.
Abstraction that frameworks provide also allow developers to focus on implementing the business logic, rather than spending too much time on low-level tasks, such as figuring out how to connect to the database, since these common tasks are often handled by the framework.
Most software frameworks are free and open source. This means that anyone can use and modify them, without being required to pay for them. “Free” should not be confused with “cheap”, or low quality.
The free and open source movement is the best thing to have happened for me, because otherwise, I would not have been able to get into software development, due to expensive licensing fees.
You can read the blog post titled What You Need To Know About Open Source Software to learn more about Open Source Software.
The advantage of Open Source Software is not just the price, or lack of it. It is really great software. In order to produce great software, it has to be thoroughly tested, and Open Source Software undergoes extensive testing before it is released.
Small teams or individuals releasing their own software privately, would not have adequate resources to take it through extensive and rigorous testing. Open Source Software often has large communities of users, who volunteer their time, to develop and test the software. The result of which is very robust software.
By virtue of being Open Source, and hence extensively tested, software frameworks are inherently more secure than individuals or small teams can manage to produce. The large numbers of people working on Open Source software, ensure that more bugs are identified and eliminated.
I have adopted frameworks in my software development solutions, and it is a decision that I stand by, and will continue doing so. I would therefore encourage others to adopt frameworks when developing software, or ensure that those they hire to develop software on their behalf adopt frameworks in their development process.
With the abstraction that software frameworks offer, cleaner code that is reliable, and with fewer bugs can be produced. Frameworks present massive gains in speed, in the software development process, that will enable teams or individuals to deliver projects faster. Furthermore, solutions developed with the aid of frameworks will be more secure and more robust, compared to the results obtained without the use of frameworks.
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