What are the pros and cons of using extjs?

Question

In one of my projects, someone recommended that I use extjs. I know very little about extjs. I completed the entire project using jQuery. I know that many of you know very well about extjs.

Please tell me the pros and cons of using extjs?

Answer 1

The following are some of the main advantages and disadvantages of ExtJS :

Pros

• ExtJS is like a superset of widgets such as simple shortcuts, textBox buttons for complex grids, drag and drop panels, etc. It also provides a demonstration for remote operations to call remote server methods.

• He has good documentation with tutorials, samples, and a user community.

• Active and currently most accepted RIA javascript infrastructure

• Good quality / readability code

• An amazing set of widgets does everything we could want. It seems fast, each version brings new improvements.

against

• Footprint - 500 KB library (use of mod_gzip can be reduced to 150 KB). Download times will be high for a homepage on the Internet.

• CSS is very easy to get lost. It's hard to find the right class names

• HTML - full divs and too complex generated code. Debug is difficult even with FireBug.

• Modified GPL 3.0 is licensed. Free for open source applications, but paid for commercial closed source applications.

• Using ExtJ leads us to make the GUI look both desktop and rich. Customization is not easily achievable.

• Downloading even simple things requires a few lines of coding, which are easier in simple html or jQuery.

• Debugging is not very simple. Only GWT is better at debugging hosted mode among javascript frameworks.

• The user cannot add bookmarks to a specific page. since objects are displayed by DOM processing, the page cannot be indexed by search engines

• Need an experienced developer.

• I'm not sure how to use this without displaying the entire EXT display. I would prefer something that could integrate into what we already have.

Link: ExtJs - Pros and Cons

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Although the previous answer has already been accepted, there are a few points that I would like to clarify.

Ext does not use the “modified” GPL license. It is fully duplicated under the GPL v3 standard and Sencha commercial license. There are FLOSS exceptions to make it more compatible with plugin / extension developers, etc., but the GPL is a standard license.

The list of flaws, while mostly fair points in general, is somewhat meaningless without any context. Comparing Ext JS with jQuery is also pointless - comparing apples to oranges. If you are comparing Ext JS with other comparable RIA structures (Dojo, YUI, Sproutcore), then things like footprint, CSS / HTML complexity, debugging, etc. Become pretty even (or at least a more useful contrast can be made). Just saying that these things are “cons” in the abstract are not very accurate, since they are basically just the requirements of any complex RIA structure.

For a few specific points, this list (according to the original article) refers to Ext 3.0. The current version at the time of this writing is 4.0.7. The total amount of code actually increased from 3.0, but Ext now comes with a dynamic class system and build tools that allow you to create optimized builds based on your application dependencies. So yes, this one has a big common footprint, but no, you don’t need to include everything.

CSS / HTML complexity is predefined, based on the complexity of widgets and layout systems supported by Ext JS. This is very common in the RIA world and does not look like simple jQuery plugins. Version 4.0 now uses SASS / Compass btw with CSS created, so customizing the original styles is actually a lot easier than version 3.0.

Debugging is also a bit easier in 4.0 (again due to the new class system), but certainly harder than any statically typed language like Java (GWT). This is a problem for any JavaScript-based framework, not just Ext.

Of course, you can add bookmarks to your application if you implement history / state support (both are offered by Ext). This is what you should do, as it is application specific (there is a certain automatic state control at the level of individual widgets), but it is certainly possible. Again, this is a common RIA problem, not something special for Ext.

A list of pros with whom I would agree (except for paragraph 5, which is presented out of context and does not make sense). In fact, the documentation and guides handled better with version 3.0. If you need specific comparisons between Ext JS and other RIA infrastructures, just search for an SO that has been well covered .

Answer 3

What you are trying to do with the wireframe will determine which one to use.

Extjs

great for a single-page RIA application where the ExtJS framework is loaded once per page with the following code with code 0 manually encoded. This means that the structure controls EVERYTHING in your application.

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JQuery

Use case

very different: your server-side infrastructure generates HTML (via JSP, GSP, ASP, whatever), and you add functionality to these pages, including a jQuery library for each.

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ExtJS Cons:

• The complex structure is not for the faint of heart :)
• Steep learning curve
• There are mistakes - yes there are. However, most problems arise due to improper use of the framework and insufficient understanding of the documentation.
• An evolving structure - this can be seen as + and - but this year ~ 7 releases were released.

ExtJS Pros:

• A truly universal client-side MVC environment with the most comprehensive set of components and widgets available.
• Extensible. Literally Ext.extend () is the first thing you do.
• Beautiful. The theme out of the box is so well designed that most developers without any skills (we do not point fingers) can create truly professional and attractive web applications.
• The documentation is by far the best I've seen in any library, API, or open source project. Complete with API documents (although there are some holes) with live code samples that you can customize and see what happens + the source code. Great examples cover most of the library. Great guides on the most important topics from MVC to Theming. Even the video library. Recently, this documentation has been significantly updated, so if you have not seen in the last 6 months - well, look!
• Forums really expect that many key experts are actively involved on a daily basis.
• User Extensions (UX) - A large user community leads to an amazing set of creative solutions.
• This is a giant! It has so many great components that I didn't really need to expand something beyond recognition. Did I mention the learning curve?
• MVC - for any RIA-respecting application, the MVC-framework is a must
• Built-in tools
• Support Support Using SASS and Compass
• ... there is so much more.

disclaimer: I am a former frustrated ExtJS developer who is finally tall enough on the learning curve to really enjoy it.

• (open as community wiki)