Ruby on Rails news: How to choose a technology stack for web application development

CRITERIA FOR CHOOSING A TECHNOLOGY STACK

Type of Web Application

The first thing to decide upon is the type of web application you’re developing. A tech stack is a toolset for creating a web app, so you need to fully realize what you’re planning to build in order to pick the appropriate tools. You should find a toolset that provides unique advantages for your web application.

In terms of complexity, all web projects can be divided into three types:

Simple. These web applications are created with the help of out-of-the-box solutions (such as CMS software, for example). Examples: landing pages and simple online stores.
Mid-level. These apps have more functions than simple apps and are built with the help of frameworks. Examples: apps for large e-commerce stores and enterprises.
Complex. These web apps have lots of functions and integrations; they’re developed with the help of different web development technologies and may be composed of several programming languages. Examples: social networks, large e-commerce marketplaces, fintech software, etc.

Knowing the type of web app you’re developing isn’t enough; you should take its business goals into account as well. This is important since your business goals impact the choice of technologies for development. Your web app can be tailored for:

Processing heavy loads. If your web project relies on load processing, you should opt for programming languages and frameworks that can provide this. Examples of such projects are video/audio streaming apps and file sharing services.
Low latency. A different tech stack is required to make your web application highly responsive and to reduce latency. Social networks are probably the best example of websites that require low latency.

Time to Market

Time to market (TTM) is extremely important when choosing a tech stack for startups and for small businesses. The faster you develop and release your application, the more ahead of competitors you’ll be. Moreover, the less time development requires, the cheaper the development cost.

TTM heavily depends on the technology stack you select for your web application, and here’s a list of issues you should consider when choosing a proper stack:

Out-of-the-box solutions. Check whether a technology has some out-of-the-box solutions for adding some necessary functionality to your web application. For example, the Ruby on Rails framework allows developers to use lots of open-source libraries (called gems) that facilitate the development process and significantly reduce TTM.
Integration with third-party solutions. Make sure the tech stack you choose supports integration with third-party solutions, as it’ll help you add the functions you need to your web application without reinventing the wheel.
Developer availability. Even if you’ve decided upon the tech stack, there’s still a problem: you need developers to do all the coding. You should check whether you’ll be able to find developers with expertise in the technology stack you choose. And remember that building a web application is just the beginning. You also need developers to maintain it after launch.
Documentation and developer community. Producing good code is difficult, and any development team may stumble over some tricky issues. It may take quite long for a team to find a solution, which means, in turn, a missed web project release deadline. That’s why you should find out whether the technologies you’re going to select have large developer communities and rich documentation.

Easy to test. A web application contains many lines of code, so bugs are inevitable. Needless to say, removing all bugs requires a lot of time and slows down development. To counter this problem, choose technologies that are easy to test. Some technologies are based on a so-called test-driven development approach, which implies that testing goes first and coding comes after. Test-driven development allows you to guarantee your code and product quality and speed up development in the medium and long term.

Development Cost

Needless to say, turning your idea into a real-life web application isn’t free of charge and requires investment. The choice of a website technology stack has a direct impact on the development cost. There are two main issues you need to take into account:

Developer salaries. Web developers are highly skilled professionals who are rather well-paid. Their salaries, however, depend on the technologies they work with. Consequently, your expenses will be different depending on tech stack. You should remember that the more advanced the technology is, the higher the developer salary will be.

image of average developer salaries in the US

App maintenance cost. Creating a web application is just one side of the coin; maintaining it is the other. To reduce maintenance costs, you should opt for free open-source technologies. For example, the Ruby on Rails web development framework is available with the MIT licence, which means it can be modified, upgraded, and used without any restrictions.

Security

Our world has gone digital over the last two decades and so have criminals. Cyber attacks are the biggest threat to online businesses: according to a forecast by Juniper Research, annual financial losses from data breaches are expected to reach a mind-blowing $2.1 trillion by 2019. Today, governments and corporations are working hard on ensuring the highest level of cyber security possible.

No doubt, you want your web application to be secure. Hence, you should pick technologies that allow you to create a really secure app. There are lots of different opinions as to which programming language is the safest, but in truth, no language guarantees 100% safety.

Every web development technology serves its purpose, so you should choose the right tool first and follow security guidelines second. Most web development technologies have security guidelines where all steps for preventing threats and minimizing vulnerabilities are given. You need to make sure that your web app is created in accordance with the appropriate security guidelines.

Scalability

Scalability isn’t a feature to turn tail on when developing a web application. No doubt you wish to see your web project grow and gain popularity. In general, there are two kinds of scalability:

Horizontal scalability, which means the ability of a web application to accommodate more requests. In other words, an app must be able to work if the number of users grows dramatically.
Vertical scalability, which means the ability to add new components to a web application without damaging its performance.

You should think of scalability in advance and choose an appropriate technology stack for your needs. This may seem a difficult choice as you’ll probably come across a number of contradictory opinions. However, we recommend relying not on someone else’s words, but on concrete examples of why exactly a certain technology is scalable.

TECHNOLOGY STACKS BEHIND SUCCESSFUL WEB PROJECTS

By now, you are almost certainly curious about some modern web application stacks. Let’s take a look at what technologies power some of the most successful web projects: