Build powerful cross-platform desktop applications with web technologies such as Node, NW.JS, Electron, and React
This book has been written for developers interested in creating desktop applications with HTML5. The first part requires essential web-master skills (HTML, CSS, and JavaScript). The second demands minimal experience with React. And finally for the third it would be helpful to have a basic knowledge of React, Redux, and TypeScript.
Building and maintaining cross-platform desktop applications with native languages isn't a trivial task. Since it's hard to simulate on a foreign platform, packaging and distribution can be quite platform-specific and testing cross-platform apps is pretty complicated.In such scenarios, web technologies such as HTML5 and JavaScript can be your lifesaver. HTML5 desktop applications can be distributed across different platforms (Window, MacOS, and Linux) without any modifications to the code.
The book starts with a walk-through on building a simple file explorer from scratch powered by NW.JS. So you will practice the most exciting features of bleeding edge CSS and JavaScript. In addition you will learn to use the desktop environment integration API, source code protection, packaging, and auto-updating with NW.JS.
As the second application you will build a chat-system example implemented with Electron and React. While developing the chat app, you will get Photonkit. Next, you will create a screen capturer with NW.JS, React, and Redux.
Finally, you will examine an RSS-reader built with TypeScript, React, Redux, and Electron. Generic UI components will be reused from the React MDL library. By the end of the book, you will have built four desktop apps. You will have covered everything from planning, designing, and development to the enhancement, testing, and delivery of these apps.
Filled with real world examples, this book teaches you to build cross-platform desktop apps right from scratch using a step-by-step approach.
