Create cross-platform desktop applications with ease! Browse the guide to hiring qualified Electron developers, ensuring application consistency across operating system environments.
What is an electron? Simply put, it is an open source framework for building desktop GUI applications. A relatively new technology, it was initially released by GitHub in 2013. Some of the top names that have turned to Electron to facilitate the creation of cross-platform desktop applications include Discord, Facebook, Microsoft, Slack, WhatsApp, and WordPress.
Despite his young age, Electron has gained quite a bit of popularity over the past 8 years. Are you looking for a developer who uses Electron to create desktop applications? Read on to learn what the framework can do and what to look for in a developer.
What is an electron?
Electron is a framework that leverages web technologies to create native desktop GUI applications. It's free, open source, and maintained by GitHub.
Using the framework, developers can create cross-platform desktop applications using JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. It uses the Chromium rendering engine and Node.js runtime. Electron applications can run on Windows, Mac and Linux.
Along with GitHub, Electron is maintained by a huge community of developers, who regularly actively contribute to the framework and support peer developers. As you can see from the above list of companies that use Electron, the framework makes it easy to create different types of applications.
Is it difficult to find an Electron developer?
Electron is a very popular technology supported by a large community. Developers well-versed in languages like JavaScript should be able to learn the framework quickly and easily.
There is an issue that may hinder your search for an Electron developer. Desktop app development is not as popular as mobile in today's world, which means you may have trouble looking for someone who is eager to specialize in Electron. This doesn't mean these developers are impossible to find. It may take a little more effort to look for someone who has extensive experience using the framework.
What to look for in an Electron developer
Electron isn't too difficult for an experienced developer to learn, but you should still look for a professional with experience using the technology. They will need to be a strong JavaScript developer with plenty of experience in desktop applications and knowledge of other programming languages such as C++, along with Node.js API and other tools and frameworks.
Interview Questions
What are some of the key benefits of using Electron to help with development?
Electron offers a large number of advantages that make desktop application development easier and faster. For one, it can be used on all major operating systems – Windows, Mac and Linux. It's also not that difficult to learn and master. Applications developed with Electron can be configured to update automatically, which can save time and effort.
Electron also comes with a large community that provides support, resources, and troubleshooting tips to developers using it.
What are the types of processes in Electron?
Electron uses a multiprocess model, with 2 types of processes: main and renderer.
The main process is responsible for the application state, created as soon as the application is started. It interacts with the operating system GUI. Meanwhile, the rendering process focuses on executing the application's user interface.
Explain the packaging on the Electron
You must package your desktop application for each operating system – Mac, Windows, and Linux – to distribute it with Electron. There are tools and manual approaches you can use to do this.
What are environment variables?
Environment variables allow you to control the application's configuration and behavior without having to change the code. The 2 types are production variables and development variables.
Production variables are used at runtime in packaged applications. Development variables are generally used for application development and debugging.
What is interprocess communication in Electron?
The Inter-Process Communication (IPC) module facilitates synchronous and asynchronous messaging between the main and rendering processes in Electron. There are 2 IPC modules:
- ipcPrincipal
- ipcRenderer
What are the types of menus in Electron?
Using Electron you can create 2 different types of custom menus. The application menu, the first type, is labeled with the name of your application. It appears in the application itself, at the top, as a drop-down menu. The second type is a context menu, which is triggered by user interactions, such as right-clicking when using the desktop application, causing the menu to appear on the screen.
Job description
An industry leader in web development is looking for a talented JavaScript and C++ desktop engineer to join our fast-growing team. Your primary responsibility will be to develop and develop existing cross-platform desktop applications using Electron.
Responsibilities
- Develop high-quality desktop applications using primarily JavaScript, along with languages like C++ and others as needed
- Maintain a high standard of exemplary code delivery
- Leverage open source frameworks and technologies, including Electron and Node.js
- Work closely with QA tester, PM, designers and other team members to streamline development and resolve issues
- Search requirements
- Provide guidance and feedback to junior team members
- Implement DevOps and agile practices and methodologies
- Communicate with stakeholders
Skills and qualifications
- At least 5 years of experience developing desktop applications using JavaScript
- At least 3 years of experience using Electron and Node
- Fluency in additional languages such as C++, C#, TypeScript, Rust, Objective-C, Swift and others
- Experience working with multiple platforms and operating systems
- Experience developing cross-platform applications for macOS, Windows and Linux
- Unit testing and debugging skills
- Experience creating CI/CD pipelines
- Git knowledge
- Familiarity with MVC architecture
- Software Design
- Strong communication, problem-solving and collaboration skills
- Experience teaching and mentoring other developers
- Comfort with DevOps and agile best practices and methodologies
Source: BairesDev
