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Simplifying Angular: A Guide by Nir Kaufman

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Keep it Simple in Angular

When it comes to writing code, simplicity is the key. This is especially true when working with Angular, a powerful framework for building dynamic web applications. Keeping your code simple and straightforward not only makes it easier to read and understand, but it also improves the maintainability and reusability of your code.

Here are a few tips to help you keep it simple in Angular:

1. Use Angular’s Template Syntax

Angular provides a powerful template syntax that allows you to express complex logic in a simple and clean way. Take advantage of this syntax and avoid writing overly complex JavaScript code in your templates. Use directives like ngIf, ngFor, and ngSwitch to handle common use cases in a declarative manner.

2. Follow a Modular Approach

Breaking down your Angular application into smaller, self-contained modules makes it easier to understand and maintain. Each module should have a single responsibility and should be reusable across different parts of your application. This modular approach also promotes code reusability and makes it easier to test your application.

3. Keep Components Small and Focused

Avoid creating large and monolithic components that handle multiple responsibilities. Instead, break them down into smaller, more focused components. Each component should have a specific purpose and should be responsible for only one part of your application’s functionality. This not only makes your code more maintainable but also improves its reusability.

4. Avoid Overusing Observables

Observables are a powerful feature of Angular that allow you to work with asynchronous data streams. While they can be useful in certain situations, overusing them can lead to unnecessary complexity. Consider using simpler alternatives like Promises or even synchronous code when they are sufficient for your use case.

5. Keep the Dependency Injection Tree Flat

Angular’s dependency injection system is a powerful tool for managing dependencies and promoting code reusability. However, a deep and complex dependency injection tree can make your code harder to understand and maintain. Aim to keep the tree as flat as possible by avoiding unnecessary layers and dependencies.

6. Use Testing to Ensure Simplicity

Writing tests for your Angular code is not only important for ensuring its correctness but also for promoting simplicity. Writing testable code forces you to keep your logic focused and easily testable. It helps identify potential issues early on and encourages you to follow best practices, such as single responsibility and modular design.

In conclusion, keeping it simple in Angular is crucial for writing maintainable, reusable, and understandable code. By following these tips, you can make your codebase cleaner and more efficient, leading to a better development experience and more robust applications.

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Kevin E.
1 year ago

i agree with you, that not everything needs to be pressed in the rxjs pattern. single one-time calls are perfect for promises.
i also agree on the less modules. it leeds to over-engineering

Samiullah Khan
1 year ago

I am scared to disable the zone-js in the existing applications.

Samiullah Khan
1 year ago

at 25:00 using simple promises helped in downloading file. Because it was one time thing and single. There was no way to use async pipe for it in the template. If I use promise for this purpose, I don't need to clean it.

Xucong Zhan
1 year ago

I have to disagree with the "There are no bad practices" point. There are, and I have been screwed over by some in quite a few legacy projects that I need to maintain.

The KISS principle is great, but I think many people mess up the two concepts of "simple" and "easy," and I am afraid that Nir's first part on modules is a bit misleading here. When the problem that an app is trying to solve is simple, keeping things all together is ok. Heck, you may not even need a framework for that, let alone something like Angular.

However, when the problem and its business domain get complex, one has to split things up, either vertically or horizontally, or most likely, both. You don't include everything in the initial bundle (putting everything in a single module) because it's easy. You don't include a bunch of function calls that deal with business logic in the template because it's easy. These easy practices hurts maintainability, and I don't think we should lower the bar when it comes to architecture just because we are dealing with the frontend.

Bart Zumba
1 year ago

Angular is garbage

Elavarasu R
1 year ago

This talk is honest. May be a little bit too honest coming from an Angular insider. But every point Nir says is blatantly true.
The angular team seems to be focussed on complicating Angular more and more to push it to do all things at once making it difficult to learn and to code…
But the only way to make angular better is to reduce the complexity and leave it to the developers to add complexity where and when needed.
Just by reducing the dependency on RxJS and better managing the change detection and removing unwanted dependencies Angular will be 100 times better than the other frontend frameworks/libraries out there…. But it seems unlikely…

Hans Schenker
1 year ago

Angular-KISS should become an Angular Community!

Hans Schenker
1 year ago

I agree you should use Angular in the simplest possible way! (do not use all the whistles and bells of Angular from the begin of your project)
Have a simple Angular Mental Model: Angular is 5D: Directives – Data Binding – Dependency Injection – Decorators – Dirty Checking!
or
Angular is a huge Template Engine: Angular starts with the Template (the my-component.html is not HTML it is a template with <ng-template> … </ng-template>!

Hans Schenker
1 year ago

The Advantage of RxJs is: once you are in the RxJs World with a creation Observable (interval, of, range,…) you can stay in this world for all your logic and when you want to run the RxJs Pipeline you built (RxJs programming is building a Pipeline of functions (operators) you subscribe to the pipeline!