Why You Should Choose Laravel as Your PHP Framework

Why You Should Choose Laravel as Your PHP Framework

Looking to implement the best web application development? If you need a very efficient web development framework, then you’ve got the best in PHP framework. It is one of the oldest and most popular framework around. And it gives you clean and reusable code to help develop the project smoothly.

But then there are several PHP frameworks as well. Which one would you choose? If you look at Google trend comparisons chart of 2017, you would say it is Laravel. And it is Laravel for many. The framework was founded by Taylor Otwell, with an initial release in 2011, and it remains one of the best open source frameworks around.

Based on Symfony, the framework is free, follows the MVC or Model-View-Controller architecture and is ideally suited for enterprise application development.

Laravel would continue to be one of the best frameworks in 2018. Here are multiple reasons why you should choose this over other PHP frameworks.

Go through them and you will know why:

1) Aids in unit testing

It doesn’t matter what application you are dealing with. It goes without saying that unit testing is an important aspect in the product delivery pipeline. Laravel supports the PHPUnit testing framework, one of the most widely accepted testing frameworks in the PHP community. It lets you create both unit and functional testing to check the code’s logic.

2) Template engine

The lightweight templates help you create amazing layouts. Incorporated with many widgets and JS and CSS code consisting of solid structures, you can easily create stunning web page layouts.

3) Object-Oriented Libraries

A noted benefit of Laravel is that it comes with its own pre-installed and object oriented libraries. One example would be Authentication library which lets you use features like password reset, checking active users, CSRF (cross-site request forgery) protection, Bcrypt hashing and so on. The framework also comes with auto-complete feature for its libraries.

4) Excellent Documentation and MVC Pattern

With its haste-free support of Model-View-Controller architecture, the framework delivers transparency with business logic and presentation. Additionally, it provides great performance of design, an enhanced development architecture and high end built-in functionalities.

5) Database seeding

The simple method of seeding your database with test data using seed classes is an advantage of Laravel. This makes it a very powerful tool for the testing environment. The main seed classes stored in the database/seeds directory can have any name that you wish, but it still should have sensible convention.

6) Speeds up development process

The framework’s advantage lies in Artisan, a command-line interface. This has a number of useful commands that aids in speeding up development process. If you want to add unique tasks within the Laravel project, you can extend the artisan with your commands. The commands with Artisan are stored within the app/Console/Commands directory, but you can also use your own storage location.

7) Lumen Micro Framework

Laravel Lumen is a PHP micro-framework hosted on the Github, and listed under MIT license. It helps the developers to build awesome web applications with expressive and elegant syntax. With its blazingly fast APIs, you can deliver micro-services as well with the framework and it can easily manage small applications or web services with great results.

8) Caching backends

There is an expressive unified API for different caching systems like APC, Redis and Memcached. In the framework, the results are cached for 22 hours, and when there is a request, the controller responds as long as it is within the time limit. By integrating the dynamic and robust caching facility into Laravel, you can enhance the functionality of the applications easily.

9) Modular

You can manage your app created using this framework using modules. You can split the project into modules, so it is a great help when you have to write complex and bigger applications. By being Modular, you can split the business logic (those that belong to each other) separately. The framework thus assists in building responsive apps.

Laravel is designed on more than 20 different libraries, and it has the capacity to split itself into different segments, thereby following modern PHP principle.

10) Migrations

Migrations is a type of version control for your database. Hence, it allows for code representation of the database schema. This makes it easy for any developer to adjust with the rest of the team, eliminating the need to explain methods, share SQL dumps etc. It is possible to achieve database consistency through the Migrations feature, and stay updated on the current schema state.

11) Laracasts

The framework boasts of having Laracasts, which is one of the best learning tools in its time. Developers take full advantage of both free and paid video tutorials. Expert developers and instructors prepare all the tutorials and the lessons, making it easy for a new developer to understand the nuances of the framework,. If you are looking to learn the framework, and build a career, go for it.

12) Route Middleware

The framework provides HTTP middleware. This provides additional layers into the HTTP route, there adding efficiency to the functionality of applications. You can execute accurate routes, remove conventional layers, test and remove individual request etc. The usage of third-party tools can also be considerably reduced, as you can easily optimise the communication between the web server and your application.

13) Blade Template Engine

The Blade Template Engine that comes with Laravel plays a crucial role in improving your website’s performance. It can compile the views into PHP code and cache the code till the views change. The Template Engine keeps the speed of the site intact even while displaying data and extending layout.

Conclusion

These are some of the features that makes Laravel a favourable choice among all PHP frameworks currently in the market. With its impeccable set of comprehensive features, you can easily customise the web applications as per client requirements. It is a time and resource saver too, as it allows you to avoid repetitive tasks across web projects. You have a very active community of expert Laravel developers who are devoted to conceiving and trying new ideas of using the framework to its optimal capacity.

Interesting Articles:
Why should you use Laravel?
Top reasons to choose Laravel as your php framework

Picture Source: Flickr.com/ Bo-Yi Wu/ Jinho Jung


The author: Reema Oamkumar is engaged as a thought leader at www.Software-Developer-India.com which is a part of the YUHIRO Group. YUHIRO is a German-Indian enterprise which provides programmers to IT companies, agencies and IT departments.

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