In the world of web development, things are constantly changing. On the one hand, developers have to keep up with the changing technologies whereas businesses are on the lookout for efficient technologies that help them connect with customers efficiently.
One technology making head waves in the web development arena is Laravel. This framework is a hit among web artisans due to its accessibility, powerful, and other add-on tools to create robust applications. Using agile development methodology, Laravel makes the entire development process without sacrificing on functionality.
In this article, we are going to look at the current Laravel development market, the benefits they bring to the IT ecosystem, how to become a Laravel developer, and how to find a Laravel Developer Job.
What is Laravel Web Development?
Laravel is an open-source PHP framework that is used to build web applications. Basically, it provides a structure upon which a program is shaped, built, and connected with different Application Program Interfaces.
A few years ago, PHP was almost a “spectator” programming language. Fast forward today, both big and small businesses are looking to hire Laravel developer to create personalized web software rapidly and efficiently. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that more than 1 million websites are built on Laravel. In fact, according to a report published by Github, Laravel recently emerged as the most popular PHP framework surpassing ruby and node js.
Why is Laravel the Best PHP Framework?
Because of the dire need for structured development methodologies. Laravel as a PHP framework has become the go-to solution for developers around the world. It hosts a large ecosystem that allows for instant hosting and system deployment.
In the corporate space, Laravel web development fundamentals have been used to create massive websites capable of running complex algorithms behind and handling multiple visitors concurrently.
Here are a few reasons why Laravel is the best PHP framework:
Security
One of the biggest headaches for programmers is creating secure websites and apps. Laravel web development uniquely provides developers with a secure way to maintain the security of their apps.
For starters, you can use hashed(#) passwords, which makes the login process more secure. Furthermore, the passwords aren’t saved in plain text, plus the Bcrypt hash algorithm allows you to create encrypted passwords. Injection attacks are almost a myth with Laravel development are almost impossible thanks to the script tag that helps escape the user inputs.
MVC Support
Another major reason why Laravel is a darling amongst developers is that it supports MVC Architecture like Symfony which helps establish clarity between logic and presentation. As a result, the app is able to perform optimally and allow for better documentation.
Object-Oriented Libraries
Laravel framework comes with multiple Object Oriented libraries plus many other pre-installed versions which aren’t found in other PHP frameworks. For instance, the Authentication library is one of the famous pre-installed libraries. Thanks to many of its advanced features, developers are able to check the active users, reset passwords, Bcrypt hashing, and CSRF protection.
Database Migration
Data synchronization between development between machines is a major pain point for programmers. After working for long hours and making countless changes to our database, it can be super-hard to save these changes in your database. But with Laravel, database migrations is extremely easy as long as you have stored these changes in migrations and seeds.
Authorization and Program Logic Technique
Developing an authentication computer code is an important step in getting the authentication part of an app right. Moreover, it also helps in arranging the authorization logic and managing access to resources.
The latest Laravel design comes with computer validation code is included which significantly reduces the time wasted when creating multiple codes.
5 Steps to Become the Best Laravel Developer
As the Laravel community continues to grow, there is a plethora of resources cropping up trying to teach aspiring developers. Which is great!! However, is there a clear-cut path to becoming a Laravel developer?
Below, we have compiled a list of five steps to help you become an effective Laravel developer.
Learn the Fundamentals of PHP
This may sound like a no brainer suggestion but it would be counterproductive to jump straight into Laravel without going through PHP first. Starting with the fundamentals is extremely important as it gives you a general idea of what to expect, plus it also lay the foundation upon which to build your career as a PHP laravel developer.
Since all the PHP frameworks are written in OOP mode, you need to be familiar with object-oriented programming, classes, objects, methods, properties, dependencies, and other traits within PHP.
Additionally, you can also create a simple project using plain PHP without using any framework. This will deepen your understanding of PHP and at the same time allow you to learn the internal functions of Laravel more efficiently.
Create a Simple Personal Project
Learning programming with zero code writing experience is akin to flying without wings. Most aspiring developers spend too much consuming books knowledge and watching video tutorials. The earlier you start coding the better. In fact, you should immediately try and put into practice everything you learn in every tutorial.
In general, it’s always advisable to try and create a minimum viable test project in the course of your learning. This makes the entire learning process more realistic and motivating. And while at it, you will come across many challenges and hurdles all which will require you to ask questions and try and solve them. In the course of solving and overcoming these development problems, you get to evolve as a developer and expand your knowledge.
Develop with Error Reporting On
PHP comes with different configuration settings that tend to hide errors in the code they run. Leaving you with a blank page. As a developer, staring at a PHP White Screen of Death is can be frustrating especially if you can’t recall the recent changes or where you butchered the code without testing it.
When building your web application, always leave the display_errors and error_reporting turned on as they will show you the run-time errors. The sole reason behind leaving the error reporting on is quite simple — it allows you to quickly discover and fix the errors.
Document Favorite Code Snippets
Another step into becoming a good Laravel developer is by documenting your favorite code snippets. As a Laravel web developer, you will occasionally code similar things repeatedly. To save you time in the future, you should always have a catalogue of favorite code snippets instead of repeating the same things over and over again.
There are multiple online apps like Code Collector, Snippet, and Snipplr, where you can keep and sync your snippet collection. The good thing about these apps is that some of them are web-based. This therefore means that you snippets are always available irrespective of where you are.
Alternatively, some integrated development environments (IDEs) like Dreamweaver and Eclipse have built-in features that allows you to store your code snippets.
Find a Mentor
Fully learning and mastering programming is a lengthy process that requires constantly updating your knowledge. However, that’s not the biggest issue. The biggest challenge lies in troubleshooting or pinpointing a problem when something isn’t working. As an aspiring Laravel developer, it’s always advisable to have a mentor to walk with you and help you overcome such problems.
There are multiple platforms where you can look for a mentor. For instance, Twitter and LinkedIn are some of the biggest conglomeration of developers. So if you are lucky enough to find an online community of developers, get in contact with them. Alternatively you can start creating a mutual online connection by mentioning them on your Tweets and gradually start the conversation.
Future of PHP Developers
The future of PHP developers is definitely bright. However, with the ever-evolving technology ecosystem, you have to keep on learning new skills in order to continue staying relevant. There is an increasing demand for CMS skills like Magento, Drupal, or TYPO3 – so learning these new skills will not only elevate your profile but also can be a great way of negotiating for a higher Laravel developer salary.
Conclusion
The current PHP version is one of the most popular and desirable frameworks for companies companies looking to hire Laravel developer/s, so you will have an upper hand over your fellow developers if you are well versed with the current version. PHP incorporates over-the-top benefits and other multiple features that every software developer dreams of having. It has libraries and modules which makes dynamic development a snap, plus saves development costs.
To underwrite this fact, it has emerged as the framework behind most websites and CMS currently active and there isn’t a sign of this pace stacking down PHP in the upcoming years. Therefore, if you are wondering about what would be the value of Laravel developer in the future, this profession is more secure compared to any other recent programming languages.
