It is generally accepted that cross-platform technologies can make life easier for software engineers: forget about the pain of developing applications first for iOS, then for Android, and further separately for the Web. Cross-platform solutions allow for developing one customizable solution for all types of OS at once. Flutter comes as an example of such a tool. So, in the article, we’re going to explore it and answer the question “What is Flutter?”.
What Is Flutter?
Flutter is an open-source, cross-platform technology from Google designed to create applications for iOS, Android, Web, and desktop operating systems from a single code base. Another important question is “What is Flutter programming language?”. It uses the Dart programming language and provides its own set of widgets to create the interface. Flutter currently supports iOS, Android, Web, Windows, Linux, macOS, and, more recently, WebAssembly.
Flutter is mainly used for mobile applications because the framework has recently acquired support for other platforms. It is also supported on “embedded devices”, for example, Toyota uses this technology for monitors in its cars.
By answering the question “What is Flutter used for?”, note that the technology has proven itself in the market and is used in a wide range of applications. For example, in the BMW electric car app, Google Pay (the team migrated from native code to Flutter before entering the global market), eBay, ByteDance, NuBank, as well as Alibaba. Now, let’s delve into the specifics of its application.
Architecture
Flutter uses a layered architecture. The top layer is a framework consisting of code in the Dart language. The bottom layer is the engine, written primarily in C++, which provides a low-level implementation of the main APIs. Finally, there is Embedder, which integrates the Flutter engine into various platforms.
Rendering process
Unlike Android and iOS, which use platform-specific elements, Flutter has its own rendering engine. Its apps render user interfaces using Skia Graphics Engine, which means the technology draws each UI element (widget) on the canvas provided by each platform.
Compilation
The technology uses the Dart language, which compiles to native code. Compiling to native code allows Flutter to interact with the platform without a JavaScript bridge (like some other cross-platform solutions), resulting in near-native performance.
Widgets
Every detail included in Flutter, from simple text to complex animations, is a widget. These widgets are not native to Android or iOS but are customized to look like native elements. The entire application is assembled from widgets, like bricks. Such a system may be more understandable for new developers.
Platform Channels
To access platform-specific features (camera, GPS, microphone, etc.), Flutter uses Platform Channels. These channels allow Flutter apps to perform actions on iOS or Android using their native programming languages (Kotlin for Android and Swift for iOS).
What is Flutter App Development?
Answering the question “What is Flutter app development?”, we should mention its basics. The declarative style of describing UI elements is one of the features of Flutter. Here’s how it works: UI is a reflection of state. You define a state, and the UI automatically adapts and renders according to that state. This means that when the state changes, the platform knows exactly what has changed and can effectively (quickly) update the UI.
A tree of widgets is used to build a responsive user interface. Each widget declares part of the UI, and the entire tree represents the whole interface. Whenever the state changes, Flutter automatically rebuilds the widget tree, providing a 1:1 display of the current state and UI.
The platform uses Dart, a modern object-oriented programming language developed by Google. According to the creators, Dart is optimized for creating user interfaces: it uses async-await to change the UI, combined with the ability to run code in isolation from the main thread.
Basic Development Steps
The understanding of the issue “What is Flutter developer?” is closely related to the steps of new project creation so let’s consider all stages.
- Choose the environment for all creation. Note that it’s possible to work with Flutter via CLI and IDE. Select the desired option.
- Use libraries and directories for effective coding. Make sure to understand the basic structure. The main directories include assets and lib, as well as the pubspec file.
- Build an app interface using UI components.
- Implement navigation between screens.
- Recheck the resulting software and test its functionalities.
If you need to develop new software based on the regarded technology, you can order Flutter application development services by hiring a professional team of software engineers who are well-versed in what Flutter programming is and know all the subtleties of its application.
Benefits of Using Flutter for App Development
There are a number of undeniable advantages of using cross-platform technology:
- Much friendlier documentation compared to Android and especially iOS. Flutter developers also release weekly videos explaining the details of the technology on their official channel.
- Common code for different platforms. Flutter allows developers to use the same code to create applications for different platforms, reducing development time and cost.
- Hot reload. This feature allows you to see the results of code changes instantly, speeding up the development process.
- Frameworks within a framework. The team of developers is developing the direction of mobile games and offers to use the Casual Games Toolkit, which has the necessary tools for writing your own games on the 2D Flame engine. There is also a ready-made set of solutions for writing news applications called Flutter News Toolkit. It contains the most popular components for creating a news app: onboarding, account creation, content feed and content pages, monetization settings, search, etc.
- Library ecosystem. Another advantage of the Flutter community is the presence of a single service that allows for the integration of third-party libraries. They are used not only for working with native code of platforms but also for complex animations, easier work with the network, navigation, and useful tools. Anyone can create their own package and host it on pub.dev.
Now, you know the answer to the question “What is a Flutter app?”. Being a modern solution, this cross-platform technology comes as a handy flexible option that helps speed up the development process, saving time and enjoying fast software creation. Thus, it takes a worthy place in the programming industry.