What You Need to Know About Django Development By: Jenna Erickson, Codal
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Django is an open source web framework that is written in the Python language, developed in late 2003. This web framework follows the MVC architectural order; Model-View-Template. Additionally, it consists of an ORM; Object-Relational-Mapper that mediates between the MVC. The main goal of Django is to create database-driven websites that are more on the complex side. Django focuses it’s attention on “pluggability,” rapid engineering, and reusability of code. Django is managed by the DSF (Django Software Foundation) who is very involved with the Django community. Every official Django event must have a ‘Code of Conduct’ in order to make a solid stance on the type of community they want to build around the Django framework. Many large, well-known websites utilize the Django framework. Some of them include Pinterest, BitBucket, Instagram, and Mozilla:
Why Django? Rapid development; Django was originally designed to assist developers take a concept of an application, and bring it to function as quickly as possible. It’s simple, developers love django because it comes with a lot of functionality, right out of the box, including RSS feeds, sitemaps, and user authentication. A framework with these features already built in allows for developers to save on coding time and spend that time coding the features that need more attention to detail. Another reason that developers love Django is it’s extreme security. Django takes security very seriously, aiding all developers to avoid common security errors. Here is just some of the security features that Django comes with right out of the box: -
Cross site scripting protection (XSS)
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Cross site request forgery protection (CSRF) SQL injection protection Clickjacking protection SSL / HTTPS protection Host header validation User-uploaded content safety Session security and limitations
Django is extremely scalable. Some of the busiest, highest-traffic websites on the web are run on Django. Some of these that I have yet to mention include: NASA, National Geographic, Disqus, The Guardian, The Onion, Spotify, Washington Post, Rdio, and Eventbrite. Django would be a good fit for any high-traffic website that needs constant support. The Django community is large, lively, and very supportive. If you ever get stuck, there is a Django Google Group that has over 40k threads of ‘how-to’s,’ discussions, and questions/answers. You will never be left alone with a question unanswered. With so many active Django users, it is very likely that a question you have has already been answered somewhere on the web. Check out this chart below that shows an array of different groups of active Django lovers, users, and developers:
A group that is missing in the above chart, is the Django Girls organization. Django Girls is a group of Django developers hoping to empower other women to learn Django. It is a newer group, but in just 1 year the group taught Python and Django (and a little bit of CSS, HTML and JavaScript to over 1600 women around the globe. For being around for only one year, with such a tiny community of female developers, 1600 individuals is not a small number. Lastly, Django has phenomenal documentation. When Django was first born back in 2003, this was one of the things that majorly set the framework apart from the rest. Documentation is great for quick references, but it is also extremely helpful when a developer is first learning Django. At the time when Django first came around, other frameworks only used alphabetical lists of modules and methods, so Django’s documentation was very unique. The framework’s documentation is also advanced and organized like no other. The documentation contains tutorials, topic guides, reference guides, and how-to guides that are all easily findable. Are you looking for Django development services? Codal is a full-stack user experience design and development agency based out of Chicago. Our focus is to blend an Agile process with the latest emerging technologies, and our mission always stays the same; work with the best, design with a purpose and engineer for a sustainable future.
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