React Native has been a hot topic in the tech world since its release in 2015. The tech world was shaken up by React Native’s ability to design mobile applications simultaneously for both Android, Windows, and iOS. It is one of the most popular cross-development platforms, and according to 2020 reports, almost 42% of software developers use React Native , closely followed by Flutter.
If you’re wondering what cross-platform development or React Native is, you’re in the right place.
This piece talks about React Native, its uses, components, etc. Read this React Native tutorial to get in-depth knowledge about the platform.
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Cross-platform development: What is it?
Cross-platform development is simply the practice of software designing which is compatible with multiple platform types. Any cross-platform app can run smoothly on Linux, macOS and Microsoft Windows, and an ideal example would be Adobe Flash. Irrespective of the platform or device, Adobe Flash will perform exactly the same. The most popular cross-platform frameworks are:
- Xamarin
- Flutter
- React Native
- Ionic
What is React Native?
React Native, acronym as RN, is a JavaScript-based, open-source, cross-platform framework compatible with iOS, Android and Windows OS. It allows software developers to design applications for multiple platforms by using an identical codebase.
Facebook released it in 2015, and today, it is used by almost every other leading mobile application globally.
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Features of React Native
These key features of React Native make it a hit:
Time-saver
React Native is a time-saving framework that can quickly detect which platform is being used to build the application, generating the codes accordingly. In addition, it is developer-friendly and time-savvy because once a code is written, it can be reused multiple times.
It offers a built-in debugging feature
React Native offers a unique built-in debugging feature due to the addition of a debugging tool to it in 2020 named Flipper. Thus, it allows developers to view the network requests and crash reports, gives them access to edit the databases of devices, etc.
It doesn’t demand in-depth technical knowledge
React Native doesn’t require high-level technical expertise or understanding, making it very popular among front-end developers. Any person with JavaScript background or exposure to ReactJS is perfectly eligible to design applications with React Native.
Strong community support
React Native is a favourite among software developers globally. Naturally, it is backed by strong community support, simplifying the learning process by offering excellent support.
Third-party library access
React Native offers easy third party library access, thus, providing extended support to the learners.
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React Native Components
The core components to know about in a React Native tutorial are:
View
It is a built-in component where the content is displayed. You can also use View for arranging the content. In addition, this fundamental component supports layout with controls of accessibility, style, flexbox, etc. For example, users can use the ‘View’ option when they need a unique style for a particular element or require any nested element.
State and Props
Any component is controlled by two data types – state and props (or properties). The State is mutable, while Props aren’t, meaning State can modify or change any value, but Props cannot. The State determines the component behaviour, how it may render in the future, etc. Props are used for passing data across various components.
Style
The style component makes applications attractive. There are two options for styling purposes in React Native: inline style and StyleSheet.
Flex layout
This component gives a cleaner layout to the content. The layout can be modified by options like flexDirection, alignItems, justifyContent, etc.
Navigators
Navigators are vital components used for changing scenes in applications consisting of multiple scenes.
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Which applications are built with React Native?
Take a look at the multiple popular applications built with React Native:
Facebook gave birth to this prevalent framework and uses React Native to develop its own Ad management application, which runs on Android and iOS.
Instagram integrated the React Native framework into their native application. They began with the Push notification view, earlier designed as WebView.
Skype
Skype brought an entirely redesigned application paired with React Native, where change was noticeable in everything from their icons to messaging interface. In addition, they not only modified the mobile application but brought changes to the desktop version as well.
Walmart
After Walmart rewrote their application with React Native, it noticed changes like increased application speed, easy onboarding of other teams, etc.
Why should I use React Native?
Are you wondering why to learn React Native? Here are the top reasons to learn and use it:
- An array of career opportunities because of React Native’s popularity. It is used by many companies, and each year, more businesses are joining the React Native bandwagon.
- Today, cross-platform frameworks are every entrepreneur’s norm. React Native is one of the best cross-platform frameworks, where you develop the code once and use it multiple times across multiple platforms.
- React Native ensures speedy application development and provides a smooth, responsive UI (User Interface). It also reduces the load time significantly.
- Building applications on React Native is affordable without compromising the functionality and quality of applications.
Platform-specific applications and React Native applications: What are the differences?
| Category | Platform-specific applications | React Native applications |
| Cross-platform | The curated application will run on a specific platform. | The applications designed will work on both Android and iOS platforms. |
| Building time | Slow | Fast |
| Applications | Complex | Simple |
| Resources | Ideal for experienced teams with sufficient resources. | Ideal for small teams with limited resources. |
Prerequisites for learning React Native
Any learner needs to be tuned with the following ideas before learning React Native:
- They should have basic JavaScript knowledge.
- They should be familiar with CSS and HTML.
- They should know about certain programming concepts, like arrays, functions, objects, classes, etc.
- They should know ReactJS.
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