Master Vue in 2019: The Ultimate Knowledge Map for Frontend Developers

If you are new to Vue development, you have probably heard terms such as single‑page application (SPA), asynchronous components, server‑side rendering, and tools like Vuex, Webpack, Vue CLI, and Nuxt.

Feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of concepts is normal; developers at every experience level face the same pressure to know everything.

Instead of trying to learn everything at once, this article offers a high‑level "knowledge map" that captures the key areas of professional Vue development, helping you set learning goals for 2019.

0. JavaScript and Basic Web Development

Just as you must learn to read Chinese before reading a Chinese book, you need a solid grasp of JavaScript and fundamental web development before using Vue.

1. Essential Vue Concepts

Focus on the core of the Vue ecosystem: the Vue core library, Vue Router, and Vuex. These tools provide the foundation for most Vue applications.

Vue Core Features

Vue synchronizes the web page using JavaScript, relying on reactive data, directives, and interpolation—key concepts to learn on day one.

To build your first Vue app, you also need to know how to install Vue on a web page and understand the Vue instance lifecycle.

Components

Vue components are reusable, independent UI elements. Learn how to declare components and communicate via props and events; component composition is essential for building robust, scalable apps.

Single‑Page Applications (SPA)

SPA architecture lets a single web page behave like a traditional multi‑page site without full reloads. By creating pages as Vue components and mapping them with Vue Router, you achieve this behavior.

State Management

Large SPAs with many components require a predictable central store. The Flux pattern and Vuex (maintained by the Vue team) provide this capability.

2. Real‑World Vue

Apply the knowledge from part 1 to build high‑performance Vue apps, then consider production concerns.

Project Scaffolding

Frequent Vue projects share common configuration and development tools. Vue CLI lets you spin up a robust development environment in minutes.

Full‑Stack / Authenticated Apps

Real Vue apps are data‑driven, typically consuming secure APIs built with Node, Laravel, Rails, Django, etc., via REST, GraphQL, or WebSockets. Understanding full‑stack patterns and security considerations is crucial.

Testing

Maintainable, stable Vue apps require testing. Unit tests verify that components produce consistent output for given inputs. Vue Test Utils, maintained by the Vue team, facilitates isolated component testing.

Optimization

When deployed, apps must perform well over slow connections. Techniques include server‑side rendering, asynchronous components, and render functions.

3. Key Related Tools

Modern JavaScript & Babel

While ES5 works everywhere, modern JavaScript (ES2015+) offers better developer experience. Babel transpiles modern features to ES5 for legacy browser support.

Webpack

Webpack bundles modules into a browser‑readable file and serves as a build pipeline, integrating Babel, Sass, TypeScript, and plugins for optimization. Although complex, it underpins Vue’s single‑file components.

TypeScript

TypeScript adds static typing to JavaScript, helping write robust code and catch bugs early. Vue 3 will be written in TypeScript, making it valuable for contributors.

4. Vue Frameworks

Frameworks built on Vue simplify tasks like server‑side rendering, component libraries, and mobile development.

Nuxt.js

Provides routing, SSR, code splitting, SEO features, and PWA support out of the box.

Vuetify

Implements Google’s Material Design as a set of Vue components, enabling rapid UI development.

NativeScript‑Vue

Allows Vue syntax to build native mobile apps using NativeScript’s iOS and Android UI components.

5. Miscellaneous

Plugin Development

Plugins let you reuse Vue functionality across projects or contribute to the ecosystem.

Animation

Vue’s transition system applies CSS‑based animations when elements are added or removed from the DOM.

Progressive Web Apps (PWA)

PWA features—offline caching, service workers, web manifests—can be added via Vue CLI plugins or frameworks like Nuxt.

Original English article: https://vuejsdevelopers.com/2018/12/04/vue-js-2019-knowledge-map/