SPA with Angular: Is Routing the Real Matchmaker?

Angular is the best choice among all the frameworks for creating single-page applications. We can also say that Angular is the official framework for SPA development. With several tutorials on the internet on different eLearning platforms, we have all learned how to create a SPA or interactive app. But very few of us asked….why?

First of all, before bringing forth all the facts, let us check out the reason behind the popularity of the single-page applications. Why do businesses prefer to launch a SPA or why do people like to use SPA?

Single-page applications are also known as interactive apps. The name clears it all. These apps have a better capacity to interact with users than other apps. Here are a few benefits that make them an ideal choice for businesses:

Caching Capabilities: SPAs retrieve all the information from the servers on a single request. It allows these apps to work with poor connectivity.

Better User Experience: It is easier to claim that a particular type of app will provide a better user experience but hard to express the exact reason. With SPAs, this is not the case! They provide better UI/UX with their linear user experience. They have a clear beginning, middle, and end.

In a nutshell, why single-page applications?

High loading speed
Smooth navigation
User satisfaction

Did you understand? I understand everything better when I am given examples of the same. So, if you are a little unclear about these apps then check out these examples. Here are some popular single-page applications which every one of us uses daily - Twitter, Gmail, Google Maps, Twitter, Netflix, etc.

Recall how smooth it is to use Gmail. It feels like you never leave the initial page. Everything pops up over the single page and it seems so clear and hassle-free. Are you able to connect? The simplest apps with the main page as the only page which the user visits are SPAs!

This is why the single page application development requires a framework that can offer interactivity by reloading page elements dynamically. Angular holds this potential. This is the reason behind the perfect match of Angular with Single page applications.

Role of Angular Routing in Single-Page Application Development

What is routing in web development?

It defines how things will unfold when the user will interact or visit a certain page. It is about HTTPS request routes for the codes. In simpler words, routing is how an application will react to the user’s interaction.

Angular Router:

NgModule is the Angular Router that defines the structure of an app. Like any other router, it allows the navigation between pages.

Routing in SPAs:

SPAs are all about giving a user experience where the user will feel that they are always on the home page while using the app. This means that SPAs demand the routers be capable of changing the elements on a single page without redirecting the user to new pages.

What makes Angular perfect for single-page apps?

Angular Router does not redirect the users to a new page. Upon interaction, it changes the content of the same page that was initially loaded. Are you wondering, how is it done? No worries, it is quite obvious to have this confusion. This is done by creating separate URLs for different content of the app. Let’s check in detail.

How to develop Single Page Applications with Angular?

In this blog, I will only brief you on the basics of how routing can be defined during this development process. I hope this will give you a glimpse of how you can practically make them match with the help of routing.

Read More: How to get the best SPA developed by an Angular development company?

Let’s learn to do this by taking an example of a single page application for an e-learning business.

Note: Routing in Angular can be defined with the # symbol.

We will see what the other URLs should be if the main page of your SPA is learning.com/index.html

Now, we will take different examples of user interaction.

The user wants to see all pending exams
The user wants to attempt exams
The user wants to delete exams

How will you do this with an Angular router? Check these links for all of the user interaction examples given below in the same order.

http://learning.com/index.html#pendingexams
http://learning.com/index.html#attemptexams
http://learning.com/index.html#deleteexams

"#" Symbol will define all the routes. With these links, the user feels that he has not left the main HTML page. This provides enhanced interaction and experience to your audience.

How is routing done in Angular?

So far you might have understood the basics of routing in Angular. To be more specific, as we saw, the basic URL will remain unchanged. Only the part of the URL that will get changes will change the views of a specific part of the page.

In other words, only a few elements will change on the main page. While routing in Angular is done, the entire page will not be refreshed. This is what single-page applications are all about!

In the main page URL: learning.com/index.html, we will add either <ng-view> or <ui-view> Depending on the addition in your URL, the views of the page will change. The link creating has already been explained above.

Conclusion:

I hope you have understood the basics of the perfect match of Angular and Single page application. It is quite simple to manage the development of SPAs with this well-recognized framework. Angular Routing has an incredible role in ensuring the essence of single-page applications remains intact. Routing is the matchmaker, indeed.