7 reasons you need to learn reactive programming NOW
Nov. 12 - 13, 2013
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco, CA
R. Paul Singh is the CEO of Espresso Logic.
In the now infamous “Lost
Interview,” Steve Jobs said , “Everybody in this country should learn
how to program a computer, because it teaches you how to think.” We all
know that learning to code is one of the most hyped skills right now –
and for good reason, considering the insatiable demand for developers.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 22 percent
growth in programming jobs in by 2020. Programming “bootcamps” have
sprung up in over two-dozen schools. In May, Hubspot made headlines by offering $30,000 for anyone who could help them hire a software developer.
And now the newest trend – reactive programming – is
rocking the developer community, exciting tech giants like Netflix and
inspiring a whole new crop of innovative startups.
What is reactive programming?
Spreadsheet cell formulas are hands-down the best example
of reactive programming. Cells react to changes in the data they
reference automatically. For example, A=B+C means that no matter what
happens to B and C, A will change accordingly. Don’t you wish you could
program anything the same way, without worrying about dependencies?
Whether you’re a software developer, a manager, or an
architect, you need to get savvy about how reactive programming concepts
are going to radically transform the industry. Consider these seven
reasons:
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1. Declarative vs. procedural
It all comes down to the difference between an imperative
system and a reactive one. You already know how traditional procedural
programming (imperative) works. A business user has a need and creates a
spec for the programmer. The programmer figures out how to best create a
system to produce the desired result and then constantly updates it as
things change.
Whereas a declarative system (reactive) asks the business
user to simply describe what they want. Then using that description the
system delivers the desired end result, of course with the help of the
programmer. The focus is on what the system should do and not how to do
it.
2. Get to market ten times faster
When implemented correctly, reactive programming lets
computers take care of dependency management rather than leaving that
work to the programmers. As a result, the code size reduces drastically.
That means 500 lines of old-school coding shrinks to five lines using
reactive programming.
3. Keep up with changes
In our hyper-competitive environment, the old model of
waiting months to accommodate changes just doesn’t work. Reactive
programming means changes can be made without worrying about logic
ordering. Ordering is the main cost-component of traditional
programming, requiring significant analysis for each change. Just like
the simplest spreadsheet, reactive programming means logic is
automatically ordered based on dependencies,
4. Improve code quality
Traditional code is error prone. It must not only be
correct; it must be called. Reactive logic is automatically applied to
all changes – it’s the next level up in reuse beyond object-oriented
programming.
5. The big kids are into it
Microsoft led the effort by releasing Rx extensions to its .NET framework. Since then, companies like Facebook, Netflix, and Twitter
have followed suit, adopting the model to slash their development time.
And now Gartner has included reactive programming in its newest report on the hottest application development trends of 2013.
6. It’s not just for the frontend
While Microsoft laid the foundation with the release of
reactive extensions to .NET called RxJS, now many implementations
including FlapJax, Bacon JS, and Elm are gaining popularity for
front-end development. Today, startups are even starting to apply these
concepts to development of the backend, which means delivering the
backend part of the app in a fraction of the usual time.
7. Links business and IT
Imagine IT teams and business users being able to look at
the same document and discuss how to build the systems. That’s how
simple it is. Think of it like an executable cocktail napkin, where
business users describe what they want and that specification is close
enough to what IT uses to simply execute. Reactive programming opens up a
whole new era of communication and collaboration between IT and
business users.
When implemented correctly, reactive programming is the
ultimate nirvana. Those 500 lines of code are distilled away,
maintenance almost disappears, and developers are empowered to operate
at unprecedented speed. It’s still in its infancy and I’m sure we’ll see
some very cool implementations in 2014 as it picks up steam.
Considering the explosive demand for developers with the latest and greatest coding toolkit, this is one trend you should jump on now.
And if you’re already using reactive programming for your business, I’d love to hear about it.
