Node.js is a popular engine invented by Ryan Dahl and it has some of its basic modules written in JavaScript. Since its release in 2009, the software has captured the attention of the pioneer users such as Microsoft, Yahoo!, LinkedIn, GoDaddy, Netflix and many more, who were impressed of this JavaScript-based scripting language.
Java doesn’t need any introduction, as it has been around for 21 years and it’s preferred by those, who want to build a real-time system, but if it is used “stupidly”, this programming language is not faster than Node.JS, because it runs as a single process. So, why would developers choose Node.JS over Java?
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Node.js can be used by the developers to write new modules in JavaScript. It was built on Chrome’s V8 JavaScript engine and its package ecosystem, npm, is very large. The number of developers, who have used this JavaScript-based scripting language to build the Applications has increased gradually, as the Node module community has added over 190,000 Node.js modules in the past five years. Even with a smaller developer base, Node.js still outnumbered Perl CPAN repository and it surpassed Java Maven Central.
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Node Package Manager tool gives the developers the possibility to find, share, and reuse the packages of code from other developers. Those who sign up for free are able to search and install over 250,000 open source packages, publish and download the unlimited open source packages. For the sum of $7/month, developers can publish and download unlimited private packages, while the organizations who pay $7/month/user are allowed to manage the permissions for the groups and teams. As for npm enterprises, they will pay $16/user and they’ll have more benefits, such as managing the permissions for the groups and teams, self-hosting the npm registry, integrating with the authentication and single-sign-on platforms and integrating with the enterprise security, CI and deploying the tools.
There are many companies, which became early Node.js adopters and there are plenty of small organizations, which are using Node modules to develop the Applications, which quickly respond to the business changes, without affecting the stability and security of the existing systems. Specialists recommend the following popular packages for reducing the Application development: express, connect, socket.io and sockjs, Jade, mongo and mongojs, redis, coffee-script, underscore (lodash, lazy) and forever.
Java – Where It Wins
There’s an endless debate on who wins the fight: Java or Node.js, but each programming language has its own advantages and disadvantages. Java is old and has bugs, but it dominates the Enterprise Server and has better IDEs (Eclipse, NetBeans, and IntelliJ), which have solid ecosystems and they’re well-integrated with the debuggers. Java also has a larger collection of libraries and offers extra features, such as threads for the Web Servers.
Node.JS – Where It Wins
Without a doubt, Node.js is very fast, but if you want the code to run correctly, make it as simple as possible and you won’t need to worry about the rest, because Node.js won’t set up separate threads to slow it down. Therefore, the developers will finish their Applications faster compared to building them with Java. Since it’s capable of handling multiple connections simultaneously, in a non-blocking manner, Node.JS is perfect as a Server-side proxy. Also, the Website owners can use Node.JS to track the visitors and visualize their interactions in real-time, just like Hummingbird does or to build a chatroom Web app or even your own Hangouts.
If you didn’t know, Node.js is also able to stream games and play them in the Browser or on a remote basis; control a car, by pressing the arrows on the keyboard to send the commands over WebSockets to the Node.js server, which sends instructions to an Arduino computer , which is connected, using a USB cable. The key presses are sent by the Arduino computer to the remote control and this is how the car can be controlled. Can you do this with Java? A developer even managed to build a drawing Application in jQuery, by extending its functionality with Node.js and giving multiple users the possibility to draw on the same canvas.
Conclusion
The Node.js ecosystem is ideal to build the Websites/APIs, B2B Web Services with Enterprise Security, scientific computing apps and many more. The app development business is continuously evolving and everybody wants to keep up with the latest changes in order to keep the interest of the users for a long time and this can be achieved only though innovation and stability. With Node.JS, the new features are implemented much faster, while with Java, it takes more time to update the Applications.