Node.js vs Java: Select the Best Option for Your Business

Java

5 MIN READ

October 21, 2020

Node.js vs Java

The initial choice of technology matters a lot. For the business owners, the utilization of a specific technology makes or breaks the growth possibilities and performance of a product. On the other hand, the development teams depend on the technology for product support and effortless migration to different platforms. Here, the battle is between Node.js vs. Java.

Java is one of the best app development languages. It is an object-oriented language that is used to develop high-end applications for both phones & computers. Java is extensively used for enterprise computing, Android phones, and the embedded worlds like Blu-ray disks. In comparison, Node.js is a programming platform that allows the writing of Javascript for both the server-side and client-side.  

Ubiquity With Node.JS

Node.js utilizes Javascript on the home server as well as the browser. The same code can run easily on both and thus it is much beneficial to stick to Javascript for both the client and server side. If you want to relocate the business logic written for the server to the browser or vice versa, Node.js & JavaScript make it pretty simple to migrate code.

Better IDEs With Java

With NetBeans, Eclipse, or IntelliJ, Java developers have the three best tools that can integrate well with servers, decompilers, and debuggers. Each of these has dedicated users, years of development, and a solid ecosystem filled with plug-ins.

On the other hand, the majority of Node.js developers code in the text editors they prefer. Eclipse or Visual Studio are utilized by some as both of them support Node.js. Although new tools(such as IBM’s Node-RED) are making their debut, they are far from being as perfect as Eclipse.

Java Wins In Remote Debugging

Java comes with incredible tools to monitor a cluster of machines. The elaborate profiling tools and the deep hooks help in detecting the failures and bottlenecks & eliminating them. The enterprise stack of Java runs top-notch sophisticated servers and the companies using Java with those servers demand the best telemetry possible. Thus, monitoring and debugging tools are very mature and are ready to be deployed.

JSON

When databases provide the answers, Java tediously converts the results to Java objects. POJO mappings, Hibernate, and other tools are discussed for hours by the developers. It might take hours and even days to configure them properly. Finally, after all the conversions, the Java code gets Java objects.

A lot of databases & web services return data in JSON, an indigenous part of JavaScript. This format is currently so common and helpful that many developers of Java utilize JSON formats. Thus, Java libraries now have many JSON parsers. However, JSON is actually a part of the JavaScript foundation. 

Node.js Is The Winner In Database Queries

Modern databases(such as CouchDB & MongoDB) require coding queries in JavaScript. Thus, utilizing Node JS with the aforementioned databases makes perfect sense as a call to the database does not need gear-shifting. In the case of Java, database queries have to be written in SQL. Although SQL is a good language for database operations, it demands multiple experts to code in Java and SQL. Also, many Java Developers need to use sophisticated Java libraries to translate data from SQL into Java objects for recasting those into templates. It is just a time-consuming and wasteful process.

Frameworks- A tight battle

Java frameworks are a broad piece of code for which engineers work to find a solution. Developers trigger the inheritance, functions, callbacks, and methods to utilize them. Some frameworks help in reducing the labor to code the application. Spring Framework is one of the best that is a very efficient and yet light app extension framework that can be used with enterprise Java. Hibernate ORM is another stable object-relational mapping structure that facilitates smooth interaction between Java & RDBMS.

A Node.js framework is a structured piece of code reflecting the workflow and the design of the framework. It is basically a sketch of an algorithm with codes that marks the end of the program. Each Node.js module adheres to the implementation guidelines particular to a specific framework.

Some of the popular Node.js frameworks are AdonisJS, JS, etc.

With Node.js frameworks, scaling up the development activity is easier(both horizontally & vertically). It is very unique and thus Node.js has a slight advantage over Java.

Advantages of Node.js Over Java At A Glimpse

  • Faster to develop high-traffic & real-time apps (such as chats or gaming) 
  • JavaScript coding can be utilized for both the client & server-side 
  • Improved efficiency of the development process by filling the gap between frontend & backend developers
  • NPM (Node Package Manager) provides developers several tools/modules to boost their productivity,
  • Fast Code execution,
  • Node.js is ideal for micro-services which makes it very useful for enterprise applications.

Advantages of Java At A Glimpse

  • The Java programming language is reliable as it has proved its worth for more than two decades and is used by tech giants worldwide.
  • Java has rich libraries of source codes that can speed up the development process.
  • Java is very reliable & stable because of unit-testing features.
  • Java has great-quality IDEs. They have powerful debugging & monitoring tools that make development easy & helps to remove bugs from apps.
  • Java manages its memory automatically and thus is more secure.

Conclusion

Exact comparisons between Node.js and Java, based only on set benchmarks, can’t provide a conclusive picture. When it comes to community support both Node.js & Java have robust backing owing to their popularity & several years of development. Companies using Node.js or Java can bring the best value for their projects if they look beyond the performance! To opt for any one of them requires you to have a proper understanding of the type of application you are developing. The pace of the app development and how fast you want to launch the product also influences the choice at times along with the scalability & security of the product. 

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