Complete Intro to Real-Time

• Understand the fundamentals of real-time communication on the web, starting with long polling and advancing to more efficient techniques like WebSockets and HTTP/2 push.
• Learn how to implement real-time features in web applications using vanilla JavaScript, Node.js, and Socket.IO.
• Gain hands-on experience in managing connections, handling data streams, and implementing backoff and retry strategies for robust real-time applications.
• Explore the differences between various real-time technologies and learn when to use each for optimal performance and scalability.
• Build a strong foundation in real-time communication, preparing you to integrate these techniques into production-ready web applications.

This course, taught by Brian Holt, provides a comprehensive introduction to real-time communication in web development. Starting from basic concepts like long polling, you’ll gradually progress to more advanced technologies such as HTTP/2 push and WebSockets. You’ll also learn about Socket.IO, a powerful abstraction that simplifies working with WebSockets and adds additional features like connection management and broadcasting. By the end of the course, you’ll have a solid understanding of how to implement real-time communication in your web applications.

• Web developers interested in adding real-time features to their applications.
• Backend developers looking to understand and implement real-time communication using Node.js.
• Frontend developers who want to learn how to manage real-time data streams in their web apps.
• Anyone interested in understanding the core principles and technologies behind real-time communication on the web.

• Basic knowledge of JavaScript and Node.js is recommended.
• Familiarity with web development concepts is helpful.

• Introduction and Setup: Understand the course structure, prerequisites, and set up your environment to start coding along.
• Polling: Learn about long polling, its limitations, and how to implement it using setTimeout and requestAnimationFrame. Understand backoff and retry strategies to handle failed requests gracefully.
• HTTP/2 Push: Explore HTTP/2 push, a more efficient alternative to long polling, and learn how to implement it on both the backend and frontend.
• WebSockets by Hand: Dive into WebSockets, starting with a manual implementation. Learn how to establish connections, send and receive data, and manage WebSocket frames.
• Socket.IO: Discover Socket.IO, a popular library that simplifies working with WebSockets. Learn how to set up connections, handle events, and broadcast messages to multiple clients.
• Wrapping Up: Conclude the course with a discussion on related technologies like WebRTC and SignalR, and explore further resources to continue your learning.