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Give your JS App some Backbone with Models, Views, Collections, and Events

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Quick Overview

Backbone.js is a lightweight JavaScript library that provides structure to web applications by offering models with key-value binding and custom events, collections with a rich API of enumerable functions, views with declarative event handling, and connects it all to your existing API over a RESTful JSON interface. It's known for its simplicity and flexibility, allowing developers to build single-page applications and client-side web apps.

Pros

  • Lightweight and has minimal dependencies (only requires Underscore.js)
  • Provides a clear structure for organizing code in web applications
  • Flexible and can be integrated with other libraries or frameworks
  • Excellent documentation and large community support

Cons

  • Learning curve can be steep for beginners
  • Lacks two-way data binding out of the box
  • May require additional libraries for more complex applications
  • Not as feature-rich as some modern frameworks like React or Vue

Code Examples

  1. Creating a Backbone Model:
const Person = Backbone.Model.extend({
  defaults: {
    name: '',
    age: 0
  }
});

const john = new Person({ name: 'John Doe', age: 30 });
console.log(john.get('name')); // Output: John Doe
  1. Creating a Backbone Collection:
const People = Backbone.Collection.extend({
  model: Person
});

const peopleCollection = new People([
  { name: 'Alice', age: 25 },
  { name: 'Bob', age: 35 }
]);

console.log(peopleCollection.pluck('name')); // Output: ['Alice', 'Bob']
  1. Creating a Backbone View:
const PersonView = Backbone.View.extend({
  tagName: 'li',
  template: _.template('<%= name %> (<%= age %> years old)'),
  
  render: function() {
    this.$el.html(this.template(this.model.toJSON()));
    return this;
  }
});

const personView = new PersonView({ model: john });
$('ul').append(personView.render().el);

Getting Started

To get started with Backbone.js, follow these steps:

  1. Include Backbone.js and its dependency Underscore.js in your HTML file:
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/underscore.js/1.13.1/underscore-min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/backbone.js/1.4.0/backbone-min.js"></script>
  1. Create a simple Backbone model and use it in your JavaScript:
const Todo = Backbone.Model.extend({
  defaults: {
    title: '',
    completed: false
  }
});

const myTodo = new Todo({ title: 'Learn Backbone.js' });
console.log(myTodo.get('title')); // Output: Learn Backbone.js

This basic setup allows you to start using Backbone.js in your web application. From here, you can expand by creating collections, views, and connecting to a backend API.

Competitor Comparisons

208,167

This is the repo for Vue 2. For Vue 3, go to https://github.com/vuejs/core

Pros of Vue

  • More comprehensive framework with built-in reactivity system and component-based architecture
  • Better performance due to virtual DOM implementation
  • Easier learning curve and simpler syntax for beginners

Cons of Vue

  • Larger bundle size compared to Backbone's lightweight nature
  • Less flexibility for custom implementations due to opinionated structure
  • Potentially overkill for small projects where Backbone's minimalism shines

Code Comparison

Vue component example:

<template>
  <div>{{ message }}</div>
</template>

<script>
export default {
  data() {
    return {
      message: 'Hello Vue!'
    }
  }
}
</script>

Backbone view example:

var View = Backbone.View.extend({
  initialize: function() {
    this.render();
  },
  render: function() {
    this.$el.html('Hello Backbone!');
    return this;
  }
});

Vue offers a more declarative approach with its template syntax and component structure, while Backbone provides a more imperative style with explicit view definitions and rendering methods. Vue's reactivity system automatically updates the DOM when data changes, whereas Backbone requires manual event handling and re-rendering for updates.

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Pros of React

  • Component-based architecture for better code organization and reusability
  • Virtual DOM for efficient rendering and improved performance
  • Large ecosystem with extensive libraries and community support

Cons of React

  • Steeper learning curve, especially for developers new to JSX and component lifecycle
  • Requires additional tools and libraries for a complete application structure
  • More verbose code for simple applications compared to Backbone

Code Comparison

React:

function Welcome(props) {
  return <h1>Hello, {props.name}</h1>;
}

ReactDOM.render(
  <Welcome name="World" />,
  document.getElementById('root')
);

Backbone:

var WelcomeView = Backbone.View.extend({
  render: function() {
    this.$el.html('<h1>Hello, ' + this.model.get('name') + '</h1>');
    return this;
  }
});

var welcomeView = new WelcomeView({model: new Backbone.Model({name: 'World'})});
$('#root').html(welcomeView.render().el);

React uses a declarative approach with JSX, while Backbone relies on imperative DOM manipulation. React's component-based structure offers better encapsulation, but Backbone's simplicity can be advantageous for smaller projects or developers familiar with jQuery-style programming.

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Pros of Angular

  • Full-featured framework with built-in tools for routing, forms, and HTTP requests
  • Powerful dependency injection system for better modularity and testability
  • TypeScript support out of the box, providing enhanced tooling and type safety

Cons of Angular

  • Steeper learning curve due to its comprehensive nature and unique concepts
  • Larger bundle size, which can impact initial load times for applications
  • More opinionated structure, potentially limiting flexibility in some scenarios

Code Comparison

Angular component:

@Component({
  selector: 'app-example',
  template: '<h1>{{ title }}</h1>'
})
export class ExampleComponent {
  title = 'Hello, Angular!';
}

Backbone view:

var ExampleView = Backbone.View.extend({
  render: function() {
    this.$el.html('<h1>' + this.model.get('title') + '</h1>');
    return this;
  }
});

Angular uses a component-based architecture with decorators and TypeScript, while Backbone relies on extending JavaScript objects for views and models. Angular's approach is more declarative and leverages modern JavaScript features, whereas Backbone's style is more imperative and closer to vanilla JavaScript.

Both frameworks have their strengths, with Angular offering a more comprehensive solution for large-scale applications and Backbone providing a lightweight, flexible option for smaller projects or those requiring more customization.

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Ember.js - A JavaScript framework for creating ambitious web applications

Pros of Ember.js

  • Full-featured framework with built-in conventions and tools
  • Robust templating system with two-way data binding
  • Strong community support and extensive documentation

Cons of Ember.js

  • Steeper learning curve due to its opinionated nature
  • Larger file size and potential performance overhead
  • Less flexibility for custom architectures

Code Comparison

Backbone:

var TodoItem = Backbone.Model.extend({
  defaults: {
    title: '',
    completed: false
  }
});

var TodoList = Backbone.Collection.extend({
  model: TodoItem
});

Ember.js:

import EmberObject from '@ember/object';

const TodoItem = EmberObject.extend({
  title: '',
  completed: false
});

const TodoList = EmberObject.extend({
  items: null
});

Backbone provides a lightweight structure for organizing code, while Ember.js offers a more comprehensive framework with built-in conventions. Backbone requires more manual setup and configuration, whereas Ember.js provides a more opinionated approach with additional features out of the box. The code examples demonstrate the different syntaxes and structures used in each framework for defining models and collections/objects.

10,479

Knockout makes it easier to create rich, responsive UIs with JavaScript

Pros of Knockout

  • Simpler learning curve and easier to get started with
  • Built-in two-way data binding, reducing boilerplate code
  • More declarative approach to UI updates

Cons of Knockout

  • Less flexible for complex applications compared to Backbone
  • Smaller ecosystem and community support
  • Limited built-in routing capabilities

Code Comparison

Knockout:

<p>First name: <input data-bind="value: firstName" /></p>
<p>Last name: <input data-bind="value: lastName" /></p>
<h2>Hello, <span data-bind="text: fullName"> </span>!</h2>

var ViewModel = function(first, last) {
    this.firstName = ko.observable(first);
    this.lastName = ko.observable(last);
    this.fullName = ko.computed(function() {
        return this.firstName() + " " + this.lastName();
    }, this);
};
ko.applyBindings(new ViewModel("Planet", "Earth"));

Backbone:

var Person = Backbone.Model.extend({
    defaults: {
        firstName: '',
        lastName: ''
    },
    fullName: function() {
        return this.get('firstName') + ' ' + this.get('lastName');
    }
});

var PersonView = Backbone.View.extend({
    template: _.template($('#person-template').html()),
    render: function() {
        this.$el.html(this.template(this.model.toJSON()));
        return this;
    }
});

A JavaScript Framework for Building Brilliant Applications

Pros of Mithril.js

  • Lightweight and fast, with a smaller footprint than Backbone
  • Built-in routing and XHR utilities, reducing the need for additional dependencies
  • Virtual DOM for efficient rendering and updates

Cons of Mithril.js

  • Steeper learning curve due to its unique syntax and concepts
  • Smaller community and ecosystem compared to Backbone
  • Less suitable for large, complex applications that require more structure

Code Comparison

Mithril.js:

const Hello = {
  view: () => m("h1", "Hello, world!")
};

m.mount(document.body, Hello);

Backbone:

const HelloView = Backbone.View.extend({
  render: function() {
    this.$el.html("<h1>Hello, world!</h1>");
    return this;
  }
});

new HelloView().render().$el.appendTo("body");

Summary

Mithril.js offers a more modern approach with its virtual DOM and built-in utilities, making it lightweight and efficient. However, it may be less suitable for larger applications and has a smaller community. Backbone, while older, provides a more familiar structure and has a larger ecosystem, but requires more boilerplate code and additional dependencies for similar functionality.

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Backbone supplies structure to JavaScript-heavy applications by providing models with key-value binding and custom events, collections with a rich API of enumerable functions, views with declarative event handling, and connects it all to your existing application over a RESTful JSON interface.

For Docs, License, Tests, pre-packed downloads, and everything else, really, see: https://backbonejs.org

To suggest a feature or report a bug: https://github.com/jashkenas/backbone/issues

For questions on working with Backbone or general discussions: security policy, https://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/backbone.js, https://matrix.to/#/#jashkenas_backbone:gitter.im or https://groups.google.com/g/backbonejs

Backbone is an open-sourced component of DocumentCloud: https://github.com/documentcloud

Testing powered by SauceLabs: https://saucelabs.com

Many thanks to our contributors: https://github.com/jashkenas/backbone/graphs/contributors

Special thanks to Robert Kieffer for the original philosophy behind Backbone. https://github.com/broofa

This project adheres to a code of conduct. By participating, you are expected to uphold this code.

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