Full Stack Web Development: A Simple (But Complete) Guide

Full stack developers are often considered jack of all trades, master of none. Rather, these developers are often masters of a few technologies, and comfortable with the rest.

Highly-skilled experts in the web development world, Full Stack Developers are familiar with coding for both the user-side frontend, as well as the backend, server-side of a website, that powers the user-side.

The key to moving forward in this dynamic and ever-changing field is the desire to learn, grow and embrace changes as they occur.

Full stack web development

Full stack web development is the development that makes up a website. It intertwines networking, hosting, and server-related constituents. It refers to software development that happens on the front-end and back-end of a project: Front-end development involves building a graphical user interface (UI) while back-end development constitutes writing maintainable code, or the business logic, to make sure the application runs smoothly.

Full stack developers have a deep knowledge of client software and server software, including, of course, web frameworks that ease the software development process.

It’s important to know the duties of Front End Developers and Back End Developers so you can know the duties that a Full Stack Developer may need to assist with:

Front-end development involves managing what people interact with and see in a software application. Web pages and mobile applications that are easily navigable and efficiently interactive are key to keep users utilizing a software.

A Front-end developer has knowledge of client software like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are two of the core technologies for web pages. HTML determines the structure of a web page, and CSS influences the visual layout. JavaScript is a programming language making for dynamic web pages.

Back-end development involves everything that the user typically does not see but which guarantees the functionality of every software project.

Server software involve languages that perform well with servers and networking like Python, C++ and Query languages for managing databases.

A favorite among back-end developers, Node.js, is a JavaScript framework enabling back-end development. In other words, developers can use JavaScript for front-end and back-end development — full stack development.

Skills You Need to Become a Full Stack Developer

Full stack developers should be experts of at least a few front-end and back-end technologies, and somewhat familiar with the lot they’re not advanced in.

With regards to front-end technologies, full stack developers must be familiar with front-end programming languages and the web frameworks that support them, in addition to HTML and CSS which are classic to front-end development.

On the back-end, a full stack developer must be qualified for database management. They should have a reasonable skill set relating to back-end languages, namely, a programming language and a query language.

Full Stack Developers are required to know how to work with version control systems (VCS), application programming interfaces (APIs), and servers.

Proficient full stack developers should also be adept at security, testing algorithms, and data structures.

Tools You Can Use as a Full Stack Developer

If you’re interested in going into this job for your career, it’s important to learn the tricks of the trade. Hone your technical strengths and fine tune your resume to show off your proficiency with these tools and skills:

• Front end programming languages like HTML, JavaScript, and CSS
• Back end programming languages such as Python, Ruby, and PHP
• Version control systems such as Git and GitHub
• APIs like REST and SOAP, along with protocol like HTTP
• Database storage solutions such as JSON, SQL, and NoSQL
• Graphic design and visual communications skills
• Apache or nginx servers

Job Description of a Full Stack Developer a.k.a. Responsibilities

Full Stack Developers cross-discipline web development skills involving front and back end. They deal with the overlap between the front end and back end and utilize all the coding languages of the first two plus MySQL, machine learning, and more. They are also responsible for the entire experience and ensure it goes smoothly.

Full Stack Developers:

• Help with the design and development of software
• Test and debug software. Keep them optimized.
• Write clean code for the front and back end of the software
• Design user interactions on the web application itself
• Create servers and databases for the back end of the software
• Ensure cross-platform compatibility and optimization
• Test and maintain the responsive design of applications
• Work with graphic designers to design new features
• Develop APIs and RESTful services
• Keep up with technological advances to optimize software
• Communicate the effectiveness of emerging technologies to decision makers
• Consider security, maintenance, scalability, and more when developing

Most Popular Technology Stacks for Full Stack Development

Technology stacks are a means of describing the different technologies to go into a software development project. Using tech stacks to recount this information is a streamlined way of communicating how an application is being built.

Some Popular Tech Stacks are:

LAMP Stack

The LAMP stack denotes: Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP/Perl/Python. These technologies reflect the operating system, web server, database management system, and the programming language for the application, respectively.

MEAN Stack

MEAN: MongoDB, Express.js, AngularJS, and Node.js. MongoDB is a database, Express.js is a web application framework and AngularJS is another web framework which empowers a developer to code JavaScript into HTML.

Much of the stack includes JavaScript frameworks, which is a huge advantage for the software stack overall. With JavaScript as the primary programming language of the stack, development becomes more convenient for JavaScript experts. Since it does not rely on an operating system, it has higher portability.

MERN Stack

MERN stands for MongoDB, Express.js, React.js, and Node.js. Yet another collection of JavaScript frameworks, utilizing React rather than Angular, makes it possible to develop mobile and hybrid apps.

Market Demand of Full Stack Developers

Full stack developers are valuable assets to companies and this accounts for their astonishingly high demand. Their wide-ranging knowledge allows full stack developers to be flexible, adaptable, and agile: essential skills for working on software products both in the startup world and elsewhere.

As a result of the cross-compatible nature of full-stack skills, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an opening for 8,53,000 full stack developers by 2024.

Income- How much can a Full Stack Developer earn?

The senior full stack developer salary in India is always at the peak when compared to other fields. Full stack developers in India earn an average salary of ₹375,000 as freshers. With early-level experience of 1–4 years, the average goes up to ₹553,006 annually. An employee with mid-level experience of 5–9 years can secure about INR 12–14 lakhs.

How To Become a Full Stack Web Development

There’s never been a better time to become a Full Stack Developer. But you might find yourself on the edge and wondering how to get into the industry, or just need a chance to hone your skills and prove your qualifications as a Full Stack Developer.

Geekster is the right place to turn!

Learn from experts in the field and network with your peers, other emerging software development professionals. Become a efficient, highly skilled, in demand Full Stack Developer and hold a lucrative, satisfying career.