There are plenty of different web development tools that can help you build a website. From Magento to WordPress, the savvy entrepreneur does his research and finds the right tool for the right job. Laravel is a relative newcomer, having launched in mid 2011; but as of the launch of Laravel 5, it is now regarded as one of the top web development platforms in the world. For newcomers to website development, this is probably all Greek. Wikipedia’s definition of Laravel is about as clear as mud to those not familiar with the lingo: “a free, open source, PHP web framework…for the development of web applications following the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern” (reference here). Like I said, clear as mud to those not familiar with the industry. The rest of this post will attempt to explain what all of it means and how it relates to building and running a website. Plus we will cover why Laravel is popular, and why our developers love to work with this web development framework. The Jargon Every industry in the world comes with its own set of terminologies, ways of discussing the industry, shorthand, and so on. The tech world is no different. More to the point, there’s no problem with this, but it can serve as a big deterrent to people looking to get into the business. Let’s take a look at some of the terms used in our Wikipedia definition: ♦ Open Source ○ Open source is a non-technical term that broadly refers to software and code that is free to use and accessible to any with an internet connection. So Laravel 5 is entirely free to download. Most web development frameworks are open source. They offer a basic level service for free, but charge for more complex services or plugins (aka. Prepackaged code that provides a specific feature). ♦ PHP

○ PHP is web programming language (aka code): <?php $x = "Web Development is Awesome!"; $y = 'Web Development is Awesome!'; That is a line of PHP, which, in conjunction with other lines of code, will result in a website displaying content that reads “Web Development is Awesome!” Almost all website in the world are built off PHP, along with fellow programming language .NET. PHP is robust, fast, and high functioning. It’s also relatively easy to perform simple tasks with limited coding knowledge.

♦ Web Framework

○ A web framework is essentially the barebones development platform. It provides developers with a complete website – say eCommerce – outline. They provide tools for rapidly assembling websites without an excessive price tag. While a custom website has its own rewards, there’s no denying that a framework like Laravel is an excellent option with faster and cheaper implementation.

♦ Web Application

○ A web app is a software program that operates within your web browser, like Chrome or Internet Explorer. Examples of this are numerous, but the best examples are Instant Messaging Services and email programs. Really, this term is fuzzy at best, and you can get 100 different definitions from 99 people. In general, if a website is acting more like a mobile app or a piece of software, its probably a web application

♦ Architectural Pattern

○ Very basically, a Software Architectural Pattern is a set of codes or coding practices that address common problems or provide common features that most websites need.

♦ Model-View-Controller (MVC)

○ An MVC is probably the most popular example of an Architectural Pattern. Many to most web applications use an MVC approach. We don’t want to get too far into the weeds here, but basically MVC divides an application into three parts. Each part has a different set of rules governing how it handles information and interacts with a user. Its preferred by many developers due to its extremely efficient use of code.

This is a pretty big info dump, but for the entrepreneur, it basically it boils down to this: Laravel is a free (at least at first) tool to help developers build websites in the blink of an eye, without breaking the bank. It follows industry best practices to provide an excellent foundation for your website, with a User Interface that attracts and engages users. Plus, the code is robust, with superior performance and speed. Why Laravel? As mentioned above, there are many web development frameworks out there: Symfony2, CodeIgnitor, and Magento are at least as popular as Laravel. But Laravel is really taking the development community by storm. It brings together all of the best elements of all its competitors – and does it with an elegance that brings a tear to the eyes of many a developer. Laravel is also easy to use, especially if you are just making minor revisions (a great option for website owners with limited tech expertise). Despite its simplicity, Laravel’s code still performs as fast or faster than competitors without sacrificing functionality. Plus, one Laravel’s newest tools lets developers build APIs (small lines of code that can perform basic tasks – like using using Google’s Maps API to for a navigation app) in a fraction of the time it would normally take. At the end of the day, most of the most popular web development frameworks are comparable. There is no real standout, though Laravel 5 maybe the closest we’ve seen. Each one has its pros and its cons; the framework eventually chosen depends partly on what needs a website has, and the preferences of the development team itself. For a more detailed conversation on the types of web development frameworks, give us a call at 408.805.0495/408.621.8481 – or click to contact us!