One distinction that JavaScript developers should be aware of is the difference between AngularJS and Angular. This is because most of them, particularly newcomers, are perplexed as to how dissimilar these two frameworks are.
Angular vs. AngularJS has been a major topic for quite some time and will most likely continue to be for many years to come. While both frameworks were created by Google, there are numerous differences between them. The primary distinction between AngularJS and Angular is that AngularJS is built with JavaScript, whereas Angular is built with TypeScript. There are significant similarities between these two open-source front-end frameworks for creating dynamic web applications and SPAs. Let’s have a look at their differences as well.
Through this blog you will get to know more about Angular and AngularJS framework and also the major differences between them.
Let’s define AngularJS and Angular frameworks and its features:
AngularJS:
Google published its first version in 2010 as a JavaScript-based front-end framework designed specifically for constructing single-page applications. Model-View-Controller (MVC) Architecture underpins AngularJS. It is a framework that is always growing and extending to provide better methods for constructing online apps.
AngularJS framework primarily transforms static HTML into dynamic HTML. Its capabilities like dynamic binding and dependency injection minimize the need for code that would otherwise be written. Because the framework is continually evolving, we have multiple versions of AngularJS, the most recent stable being 1.7.9. It’s also worth noting that Angular is not the same as AngularJS. However, it is an open-source project that anyone can use and modify. It also extends HTML attributes with Directives and uses HTML to bind data.
Features of AngularJS:
AngularJS framework has a plethora of capabilities that aid in the development of effective applications. Some of the features are as follows:
1. MVC: An architecture is essentially a software pattern that is utilized to create an application. It mostly comprises of the following elements:
- Model: This component consists of a database and is in charge of managing the application’s data and logic. It updates itself in response to requests from the View component and instructions from the Controller component.
- View: This component is in charge of displaying application data to users. The View is the user interface that helps to render the required data to the user using AngularJS expressions.
- Controller: This component is in charge of communicating and interacting between the Model and the View Component, i.e., connecting the model and the view component. It aids in data validation by implementing some business logic that manipulates the state of the data model.
2. Data Model Binding: In AngularJS, data binding is a two-way operation, which means that the view layer of the MVC architecture is an exact copy of the model layer. To connect data to HTML controls, you do not need to create any extra code. Normally, in previous MVC structures, we must constantly update the display layer and the model layer to keep them in sync. The model layer and the view layer in AngularJS are said to be synced with one other. When the data in the model changes, the view layer updates, and vice versa. It happens instantly and automatically, which helps to ensure that the model and view are always up to date.
3.Templates: The biggest benefit of utilizing AngularJS is how it uses templates. Normally, the browser passes the templates into DOM, which then becomes the input of the AngularJS compiler, and AngularJS explores the DOM template for rendering instructions known as directives. AngularJS’s siblings work differently because they employ the HTML String, whereas AngularJS does not change the template strings. Using the DOM allows us to extend the directive vocabulary or even abstract it into reusable components.
4.Unit testing is complete: Google’s designer was concerned not only with developing Angular but also with developing a testing framework called “Karma” that aids in the design of unit tests for AngularJS apps.
5. Extensibility and integration: AngularJS is easily integrated with other libraries and frameworks. It allows you to interface with server-side APIs, process HTTP requests, and integrate with third-party utilities. You may also extend the functionality of AngularJS by writing custom directives, filters, and services, allowing you the freedom to customize the framework to your specific requirements.
Angular:
Another open-source framework that is absolutely free to use. While Angular is a JS-based framework, TypeScript is its core programming language. Google created Angular, and TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript, which essentially means that TypeScript has all the capabilities of JS plus some extra features. Angular is generally used to create fully featured web applications.
A well-known framework is an excellent choice for developing strong web apps with a modern design and highly dynamic behavior. Because Angular is modular, you may break the entire application into discrete portions (called modules) that represent a certain functionality. Angular allows you to easily create high-performance web applications while adhering to the MVC paradigm and providing two-way data binding.
Features of Angular:
Some of Angular’s most notable features are listed below.
- Use of TypeScript: AngularJS employs JavaScript, however Angular (2 and later versions) uses Typescript during development. Typescript provides static typing, which decreases the runtime issues that AngularJS was causing when developing large apps.
- Faster than AngularJS: Angular is at least 7 times faster than AngularJS due to its superior architecture and data binding technique. It does not generate HTML and then wait for the browser to parse it; instead, it directly creates DOM data structures. It also has the characteristic of lazy loading, which means that only the components that are rendered are needed, making the total program faster.
- Component-based Architecture: Angular employs a component-based architecture, in which directives are used like components. Angular provides reusable, simple-to-use, and maintainable components that are also self-contained.
- Angular includes a Command Line Interface (CLI): which allows for easy access to testing methods and application maintenance from a command shell.
- Data Binding: AngularJS performs data binding using the NG directive approach, which requires a developer to remember the exact expression of the NG directive, whereas Angular () is used for event binding and [] also for property binding.
- Mobile App Development: Another popular feature of Angular is the ability to design mobile apps with the help of Angular.
AngularJS vs Angular Comparison:
The AngularJS vs Angular comparison table below briefs about the difference between AngularJS and Angular frameworks.
| Parameter | Angular | AngularJS |
| Supported Languages | Although Angular supports both JavaScript and TypeScript, it prefers the latter for the following reasons:
|
It only supports JavaScript. |
| Mobile Development Support | Angular applications are mobile-friendly, which is one of its distinguishing features. Angular applications, in other words, are fully optimized for mobile browsers. | AngularJS-based applications are not mobile-friendly. |
| Architecture Support | Angular’s architecture is mostly built on Components. Its Components are also a mix of directives and templates.
One or more Angular Components are used in every Angular application. |
AngularJS supports the MVC and MVVM architectures, where MVC stands for Model-View-Controller and MVVM stands for Model-View-ViewModel.
|
| Performance and Speed | The data binding functionality of Angular applications contributes significantly to their great performance. Data binding enables real-time website content updates without the need for extensive coding.
Furthermore, Angular supports server-side rendering, which allows Angular applications to load quickly. |
AngularJS also includes two-way binding, which makes it easier to create dynamic web pages. As a result, AngularJS applications perform admirably.
The overall performance of AngularJS applications, however, falls short of what is anticipated of modern applications. |
| Ease of Managing Projects | Angular specifies a correct framework that you must adhere to when designing an application, making projects produced with it readily manageable. | There is no need to adhere to a specific structure when using AngularJS. As a result, AngularJS projects are challenging to manage, particularly when they are large and sophisticated. |
| Dependency Injection | To improve application speed, Angular employs hierarchical dependency injection. | Dependency injection is not used in AngularJS. Instead, it employs commands. |
| Routing | Angular allows you to route between several views (templates). To access the client’s view, it uses a URL that looks like a directive.
To define routing information in an Angular app, use @Route Config{(…)}. |
AngularJS also allows to define routing information. To define routing information in AngularJS, simply use @routeProvider.when(). |
| Data Binding | Two-way binding is supported by Angular. It lets you use () or [] to bind data between the view and the model. | Two-way binding is also supported by AngularJS. However, for one-way binding, it employs the ng-bind directive and the ng-model directive for two-way binding. |
| CLI | The framework includes the AngularCLI command-line tool, which allows you to build and manage components and other project files from the command line. | AngularJS does not include a command-line interface. |
| Testing | It assists unit tests with Karma, a JavaScript test runner. Furthermore, the Angular CLI simplifies app development and hence enables easy testing. | Unit tests, which you can build while developing the application, can also be used to test AngularJS code. AngularJS, on the other hand, depends on third-party tools to create and test apps thoroughly. |
| SEO Support | Angular provides the pieces required to make web apps easily crawlable by search engines. | AngularJS does not provide any efficient methods for making applications SEO-friendly. |
| Application Examples | Gmail, Upwork, JetBlue, and Wikiwand. | Netflix, Lego, IStock, and AngularJS official website. |
How to Migrate from AngularJS to Angular?
In the preceding paragraphs, we learned about the characteristics and how AngularJS and Angular differ from one another. In this section, we will learn about migrating from AngularJS to Angular in the steps listed below:
Step 1: Get started by installing TypeScript and the @types/angular package. Then, make the language interoperable with the previous JavaScript code by using the TS Compiler and a TS module integration.
Step 2: Using Angular CLI, create a new build of the old AngularJS app. Some developers use Webpack directly instead, but this is time-consuming in our experience, especially because CLI supports Webpack internally. Copy the AngularJS files to a new Angular folder.
Step 3: Use the ngUpgrade toolkit to do a hybrid upgrade and run two frameworks at the same time. Using default function arguments will aid in backward compatibility and code optimization. This renders the migration process opaque to users while also making it more convenient for the client.
Step 4: Transfer component APIs and services. You can use the downgrade components to make the newer portions available within the project’s AngularJS section. While migrating the AngularJS component to the new version of the app, you may need to change some code. Refactoring and adapting the AngularJS module configuration files to comply with the revised folder structure and Angular configuration requirements is a critical step.
Step 5: The final stage is routing, which is frequently implemented with UI-Router. This is supported by ngUpgrade by default, and UI-Router includes smooth hybrid migration support.
Step 6: Because the JS and Angular template syntaxes differ, compile-time issues may occur, so test the app after the migration. Examine whether all components of the solution are compatible with the new Angular architecture.
AngularJS to Angular Migration Tools:
The tools described below are a few popular AngularJS and Angular migration tools, namely UI Router, Angular CLI Builders, ngMigration Assistant and ngUpgrade. Let’s read about each tool below:
- UI Router: It is a router that coders can use to create a client-side route for SPAs (Single Page Apps). The key advantage of this router is that its core is framework independent. It is compatible with Google’s framework versions 1 and 2+.
- Angular CLI Builders: Programmers can use them to set up complex development processes, execute services, or generate a webpack faster. Builders, in fact, provide several useful capabilities that make the AngularJS to Angular transfer easier. This type of instrument is utilized in conjunction with the API Architect.
- ngMigration Assistant: This tool functions more like a guide, assisting you in determining the optimal migration options. In general, the goal of this aid is to examine the data on which the instrument recommends making the AngularJS transfer to Angular. Even if ngMigration does not always operate completely, it alleviates the agony of selecting on a single upgrade path for organizations in many cases.
- ngUpgrade: When it comes to platform upgrades, this is the most useful tool. ngUpgrade is the official library for upgrading large and small applications. Its major task is to smoothly combine TS- and JS-based framework components. This tool is set up so that developers can convert AngularJS-based source code to TypeScript-based code.
One of the most prominent comparisons that JavaScript developers look for is Angular vs. AngularJS. While both are sophisticated JavaScript frameworks produced by Google, there are some significant distinctions that you should be aware of before selecting one of them for constructing a project.
To summarize everything, remember that Angular is the successor of AngularJS and provides improved performance and functionality. While AngularJS is continuously updated with new advancements, it just cannot compete with Angular’s contemporary features. So, in our humble opinion, Angular is superior to AngularJS, particularly if you want to construct modern web apps with expanded functionalities.
