This time, we will introduce the content of "Bet You Didn’t Think Your Browser Could Do That" from the presentation held at the "Jamstack Conference 2018"!
The "Jamstack Conference," which has over 10 years of history, is hosted by Netlify, the cloud computing company that created Jamstack. Developers from around the world gather to discuss the design and development of the latest websites based on the Jamstack concept. The presentations are in English, but this blog will introduce them in Japanese.
- Table of Contents
The speaker this time is Monica Dinculescu, the developer of Magenta, a platform that combines machine learning with music and art.
The "laziness" required of programmers is discussed here, and how it contributes to the development of Jamstack.
Well then, let's take a look right away.
Bottlenecks in the Development Flow
The above diagram illustrates how the service developed by Mr. Monica reaches the users.
The pixels surrounded by pink represent the parts she directly develops, expressed in her unique style.
The section highlighted in yellow represents the processes that take place on the server.
The development of pixels can sometimes be completed in 1 day.
However, if there is a problem with the process that occurs on the server in the yellow section, it can take as long as more than 4 months to fix or maintain it.
So, what is one of the causes of problems that occur in the processes on the server?
Complexity Issues
One of the causes of problems occurring in the processes carried out on the server.
That is, complexity, Mr. Monica emphasizes.
For example, a case of complexity is...
When using libraries such as JavaScript libraries, there are times when you import the library "just in case" even for features that you do not actually use.
As a result, different versions of the libraries will be mixed. What will happen then?
Conflicts due to version differences in the library cause frequent errors.
This is just one example, but when a single developer tries to look into server-related errors like this...
The required skills are extensive. It also incurs costs.
In reality, one person cannot become an expert in all areas.
Still, why is the misconception that "static sites are not acceptable!" ingrained in developers, leading to a focus on server-related tasks?
Why is a server necessary?
Three common reasons cited for the claim that an in-house server is necessary are...
① Hosting
Reason 1
It is considered that a server is needed to host the services created.
[In reality]
It can be replaced with cloud services as shown in the image above.
Setting up your own server, managing the OS and patches, and monitoring the network... it is far more beneficial to allocate these costs to the core development tasks!
② Database
[Reason 2]
It is considered that a database is necessary.
[In reality]
You can also use cloud services for the database!
Both SQL and NoSQL, as well as local storage, can utilize cloud services.
③ Interact
[Reason 3]
Have customers fill out the form and perform user authentication.
It is considered that a server is essential for this.
[In reality]
These can also be resolved with services provided by third parties!
Current Dynamic Processing in Browsers
The range of what can be done by simply calling a browser and JavaScript libraries has greatly expanded. Four demos were introduced during the presentation.
Here, we will introduce one of them!
Tensorflow is a famous Python library for machine learning.
There are increasing examples utilizing the JavaScript version tensorflow.js.
These achieve processing speeds on the browser that are comparable to those when executed on a local machine.
Summary
"Being lazy" is a fundamental principle conveyed to programmers.
In other words, it is the philosophy of not repeating these troublesome tasks, such as "tasks that should not have been necessary in the first place" and "unnecessarily repeated work."
Various libraries have evolved based on that philosophy.
The development process has become more complex, and the knowledge to be acquired has increased.
It is ironic that the results are increasingly diverging from the desired "lazy".
To return to being "lazy," it was a natural landing point for the new generation of her, Jamstack.
It seems that we can expect even more from now on!!
Thank you for reading until the end.
Human Science Co., Ltd. provides solutions for web content and platforms using a unique combination of "document production know-how" and "the latest web development technology (Jamstack)" that is not available from other companies.
If you are interested, please feel free to contact us here!
Human Science Co., Ltd.
https://www.science.co.jp/document/jamstack.html
Source of this document: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5QYSdpMs6Y
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