What is Node js?

Node is Open source and cross platform run time environment for executing JavaScript code outside of a browser.

We generally use node to build back-end service also called API or application programming interfaces.

These are the service that used by frontend application or client applications. For example, mobile app running in mobile phones or web app running inside of web browser. These client apps are simply what the user sees and interacts with. They are just a surface, they need to talk to some service on the web server to store data or send emails, push some notification and so on.

Node is ideal for building highly-scalable, data-intensive and real time back-end service that power our client application

But there us also more application to use as back-end service. So, what's so special about node??

What's so special about node??

Node is easy to get started and can be used for prototyping and agile development but it can also be used for building super-fast and highly scalable service

it's used in production by large companies such as paypal, uber, netflix and so on

IN paypal they re-build there entire java and spring based application using node and found that the node application was build twice as fast with fewer people in 33% fewer lines of code 40% fewer files and more importantly they doubled the number of request served per second while decreasing the average response time by 35%, so node js is an excellent choice for building highly scalable services.

Another reason for using node, is that in node applications we use JavaScript, so if you are front end developer and know JavaScript , you can reuse your JavaScript skill and transition to a full stack developer and get as better job with better pay you don't have to learn a new programming language. also because you can use JavaScript both on front end and on the back end your source code will be cleaner and more consistent so you would use the same naming convention, the same tools and same best practices.

Finally another reason for using node is it has the largest ecosystem of open source libraries available to you so for pretty much any features or building blocks you want to add your application there is some free open sourced library out there that you can use so you don't have to build these building blocks from scratch and instated you can focus on the core of your application.