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A front-end web developer's responsibility is to create the content users see on their screens. There is no doubt that frontend developers worldwide strive to use the best front-end frameworks to deliver the best user experience.

The end-user is the main focus today, and long-term customer retention depends on providing a great experience. Creating a user interface that is user-friendly and seamless is the first step in this process. As a result, we will cover one of the most popular frontend frameworks available to developers today, i.e., AngularJS for beginners.

What is AngularJS in Simple Terms?

AngularJS for beginners is a popular JavaScript framework trusted by developers worldwide for creating robust and powerful MVC-based web applications. With AngularJS, you can divide the presentation layer, the data layer, and the layer containing the business logic. It extends its syntax to create different application components using HTML as a template language. The features of data binding and dependency injection also aid in reducing the amount of code.

What is a Frontend Framework?

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To better understand AngularJS for beginners, we must first understand what the frontend is to comprehend a frontend framework.The frontend refers to the parts of a website or application that users can see. There are two main factors that contribute to this; typography, and graphics. It also entails creating user-friendly interfaces and effectively presenting data to users from the back end.

The frontend of your website can therefore be built using a frontend framework as a platform or tool. Utilizing a frontend framework, one can manage AJAX requests, link data to Document Object Model (DOM) elements, define a file structure, and style website or application components, among other things.

Most frontend frameworks are packages of pre-written, standardized CSS code organized into folders and files. They establish a foundation to build on while allowing for flexibility in the final design. Using a frontend framework, you can build an application with the confidence that it is compliant, well-structured, upgradeable, and maintainable.

What is AngularJS Used For?

Generally speaking, AngularJS for beginners is used for interactive website components. Due to its efficiency, simplicity, adaptability, and constant updates, it is a highly favored framework.

Rxjs and AngularCLI are two built-in features of Angular that are more capable of creating channels for exchanging data and independently handling events. Creating apps, adding files, and debugging a project are all a breeze when using Angular. Running the components in parallel maximizes developer efficiency and reduces code lines. As a result, angular improves overall performance. Additionally, it provides quick server-side rendering, supporting views without browser-side rendering.

How do I Start Learning AngularJS?

Giving AngularJS a glance and getting acquainted with its components on a sufficient level of detail is a good place to start. However, I would advise you to take your time and not try to do too much too soon. Achieve a level of fluency with the language before trying to do anything too complicated.

Is AngularJS Hard to Learn?

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AngularJS for beginners is thought to have a much steeper learning curve when compared with React. The Angular framework is verbose in comparison and its complex component management system necessitates numerous repetitive actions.

Additionally, the framework is constantly changing, so engineers must constantly adjust. Using TypeScript and RxJS in Angular 2+ versions is a further issue. Even though TypeScript is similar to JavaScript, learning it takes time. It won't be easy to comprehend RxJS as well.

However, anything is possible with the right approach and zeal to learn.

How Many Days Will It Take to Learn AngularJS?

This question has no definitive answer because it depends on each individual's motivation and learning capacities, including attention and retention spans. However, if you are willing to dedicate at least 2-3 hours per day to learning Angular, 2-3 months should be enough. It might take fewer weeks if you put in more time each day.

What Are the Basics Required to Learn AngularJS?

Overall, the following may ease the process of learning AngularJS for beginners:

  • Moderate knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
  • Basic Model-View-Controller (MVC) concepts
  • The Document Object Model (DOM)
  • JavaScript functions, events, and error handling.

Along with this, interest and motivation are essential.

What is the Difference Between Angular and React

Selecting the appropriate JavaScript frameworks can be very confusing, especially when many options are available that are capable of fitting the project requirements. However, selecting the best framework requires knowledge of several crucial factors. The two frameworks, Angular and React, are frequently compared.

Reactjs is a Javascript library built using JSX, whereas Angular is a Javascript framework built using Typescript. React creates UI components for any app with frequently varying data, whereas AngularJS for beginners is primarily used to create complex enterprise-grade apps like single-page apps and progressive web apps. Due to Angular's excessive number of built-in functionalities and React's smaller package size, React is easier to learn.

Is it Worth Learning AngularJS in 2022?

Angular, one of the most popular programming languages in recent memory, has remained popular over time.  Numerous powerhouse companies and institutions use Angular in their app development pipeline, including Google (of course), Microsoft Office, Gmail, Forbes, Delta, Deutsche Bank, PayPal, and Samsung.

Both Angular and React are two popular frameworks for creating dynamic user interfaces. Angular is a comprehensive framework that ensures data syncs across all levels, from your application to the server. Angular  uses two-way data binding, which contrasts with React's one-way data binding. 

React has an easier learning curve and is therefore much easier for beginners. If you're interested in job opportunities and getting started with web development quickly, it's better to start with React.

What are the Key Topics to Learn in Angular?

There are several topics to learn in AngularJS for beginners, and this long list keeps getting longer. So, below, we will cover the essential topics.

What are AngularJS Expressions?

Double braces can be used to enclose AngularJS expressions: expression. They can also be written as ng-bind = "expression" inside a directive. Then, AngularJS will resolve the expression, and the result will be returned exactly where the expression is written.

Expressions in Angular are much like JavaScript expressions: They can contain literals, operators, and variables. Here is an example:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/angularjs/1.6.9/angular.min.js"></script>
<body>
<div ng-app="">
  <p>This is an expression: {{ 1.5 * 5 }}</p>
</div>
</body>
</html> {% code-block-end %}

This gives the following output:

This is an expression: 7.5

What are AngularJS Modules?

In AngularJS, a module is what essentially defines an application. 

An AngularJS module is, by definition, a way to organize related components, directives, pipes, and services, allowing them to be combined with other modules to form applications.

For an easier understanding of AngularJS for beginners, an Angular application can be considered a puzzle where each piece (or each module) is needed to see the full picture.

An AngularJS module can be created using the angular.module function. Once you have created an app you can add controllers, directives and pipelines to your application. For example, we can add a controller with the ng-controller directive:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<div ng-app="exampleApp" ng-controller="myCtrl">
{{ FirstName + " " + FastName }}
</div>
<script>
var app = angular.module("exampleApp", []);
app.controller("myCtrl", function($scope) {
  $scope.firstName = "John";
  $scope.lastName = "Doe";
});
</script> {% code-block-end %}

Here "exampleApp" refers to an HTML element in which our AngularJS application will run.

What are Directives in AngularJS?

Directives in AngularJS let you extend HTML by giving it new syntax. Each directive has a name; either one that is predefined by Angular, such as ng-repeat, or a custom name that can be anything. In addition, each directive specifies where it can be used, whether in an element, attribute, class, or comment.

AngularJS has many built-in directives which offer different functionalities and are defined using the ng- prefix. Some directives include:

  1. ng-app directive initializes an AngularJS application
  2. ng-init directive initializes the data in the application
  3. The ng-model directive is used to bind some value of an HTML control to application data.

Let us see these directives in action:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<div ng-app="" ng-init="firstName='John'">
<p>Name: <input type="text" ng-model="firstName"></p>
<p>You wrote: {{ firstName }}</p>
</div> {% code-block-end %}

What is Data Binding?

In AngularJS, data binding refers to the synchronization of the model and the View. Applications using AngularJS typically have a data model. The data model is a set of information that the application can use. Data binding binds AngularJS expressions with AngularJS data.

We have already seen Data Binding in action. In the previous example, the {{ FirstName }} expression is an AngularJS data binding expression as it is bound with:

{% code-block language="js" %}
ng-model="FirstName." {% code-block-end %}

More specifically, you can usually use the ng-bind directive, which will bind the innerHTML of the element to the specified model property:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<p ng-bind="Firstname"></p> {% code-block-end %}

Like the previous example, you can also display the content from the model using double braces {{ }}:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<p>First name: {{Firstname}}</p> {% code-block-end %}

What are Controllers in AngularJS?

In AngularJS, controllers are what control the data in AngularJS applications. Controllers are regular JavaScript objects created by regular JavaScript object constructors. Therefore, all AngularJS applications are in some way controlled by controllers.

You can add controllers to your application by using the ng-controller directive. Let us take a look at an example:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<div ng-app="exampleApp" ng-controller="exampleController">
First Name: <input type="text" ng-model="FirstName"><br>
Last Name: <input type="text" ng-model="LastName"><br>
<br>
Full Name: {{FirstName + " " + LastName}}
</div>
<script>
var app = angular.module(exampleApp, []);
app.controller(exampleController, function($scope) {
  $scope.FirstName = "John";
  $scope.LastName = "Doe";
});
</script> {% code-block-end %}

In this example, we define a controller using the ng-controller directive having two-controller properties: FirstName and LastName. We also define a JavaScript function named "exampleController" and add it to our "exampleApp."

Using controllers, we can add a different method to our application as variable functions. For example:

{% code-block language="js" %}
<div ng-app="myApp" ng-controller="exampleController">
First Name: <input type="text" ng-model="FirstName"><br>
Last Name: <input type="text" ng-model="LastName"><br>
<br>
Full Name: {{FullName()}}
</div>
<script>
var app = angular.module('myApp', []);
app.controller('exampleController', function($scope) {
  $scope.FirstName = "John";
  $scope.LastName = "Doe";
  $scope.FullName = function() {
    return $scope.FirstName + " " + $scope.LastName;
  };
});
</script> {% code-block-end %}

Or, even load controllers from external files. We can do this by adding the code between the <script> tags into an external file like exampleController.js:

{% code-block language="js" %}<div ng-app="myApp" ng-controller="exampleController">
First Name: <input type="text" ng-model="FirstName"><br>
Last Name: <input type="text" ng-model="LastName"><br>
<br>
Full Name: {{FullName()}}
</div>
<script src="exampleController.js"></script> {% code-block-end %}

What are Scopes in AngularJS?

AngularJS applications consist of 3 components:

  1. View, which is the HTML of the application
  2. Model, which defines the data for the View
  3. Controller, which consists of JavaScript functions to alter the data.

The scope is the Model that binds the View to the Controller.

AngularJS scopes are JavaScript objects with methods and properties available for both the View and the controller. When making a controller in an AngularJS application, you can pass in a scope object as an argument. Let us take a look at an example:

{% code-block language="js" %} <div ng-app="myApp" ng-controller="myCtrl">
<h1>{{carname}}</h1>
</div>
<script>
var app = angular.module('myApp', []);
app.controller('myCtrl', function($scope) {
  $scope.carname = "Volvo";
});
</script> {% code-block-end %}

When you add properties to a scope object in the application controller, the View also gets access to these properties. Thus, the model, View, and controller also get updated when you update the scope.

What is an AngularJS Filter?

AngularJS filters allow users to format data in the user interface without altering the original format. AngularJS provides a plethora of filters to transform data:

  • currency: Used to format a number to a currency format
  • date: Used to format a date to some format
  • filter: Select a subset from a set of items
  • json: Used to format an object to a JSON string
  • limitTo: Used to limit an array/string, into a specific number of elements/characters
  • lowercase: Used to format a string to lower case
  • number: Can format a numerical value to a string
  • orderBy: Sorts an array by an expression
  • uppercase: Used to format a string to upper case.

Filters in AngularJS can be added to expressions used in the pipeline | character followed by a filter. Let's look at an example:

{% code-block language="js" %} <div ng-app="exampleApp" ng-controller="exampleController">
<p>The name is {{ LastName | uppercase }}</p>
</div> {% code-block-end %}

What is Routing in AngularJS?

Routing allows your application to route different pages without reloading the entire application.

Use the ngRoute module if you want to navigate between different pages within your application but also want it to be an SPA (Single Page Application) with no page reloading.

To enable routing in your application, you need to integrate the AngularJS Route module:

{% code-block language="js" %} <script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/angularjs/1.6.9/angular-route.js"></script> {% code-block-end %}

After integration, you need to add the ngRoute dependency in your application module:

{% code-block language="js" %} var app = angular.module("myApp", ["ngRoute"]); {% code-block-end %}

Running the above code will give your application access to the route module, which in turn provides the $routeProvider. First, use the $routeProvider to configure different routes in your application. Then your application needs a container to put the content provided by the routing. This container is the ng-view directive. There are three ways to include the ng-view directive in your application that would be covered in the fundamentals of any Angular course.

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Photo from smartmockups.com

How to Get Started in AngularJS?

Before getting started with AngularJS, you need to understand the fundamentals of JavaScript. JavaScript is a universal language with a vast array of frameworks and libraries like AngularJS that is immensely helpful to developers in the web development world. So, one must learn JavaScript before moving on with AngularJS. Microverse is an incredible coding school that can help you get started.

Microverse emphasises community, accountability, and support and is a great place to begin your journey toward becoming a software developer. It employs pair programming that assists developers, enhances communication, and allows them to acquire crucial teamwork skills. Microverse students come from over 100 countries, allowing you to participate in a diverse and driven community and gain life-changing experiences. Moreover, to help students to find great jobs no matter where they live. Microverse also focuses on in-demand tech skills required by software companies worldwide.

With Microverse, you will learn Javascript and other programming languages and systems (like React) that can help you develop the skills needed to obtain job opportunities in software development.

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