SPAs vs. MPAs in Web Development

In web development, we encounter two main types of applications: Multi-page Applications (MPAs) and Single-page Applications (SPAs). To help you understand the difference, consider two different ways to read a book.

Multi-page Applications (MPAs)

Imagine you have a thick book, and each page of that book represents a different part of your web app. When you want to move from one part to another, you turn the page. This is how MPAs work. Each section or feature of your web app has its separate web page, just like each part of the book is on a different page. But here's the thing: every time you turn a page in the book, you need to wait a bit to read the new page. It's like closing the book and opening it again. In MPAs, navigating between sections of your app often involves this kind of "page-flipping," which can make things a bit slower.

Single-page Applications (SPAs)

Now, imagine you have a magic book. When you start reading, the text and images on the page change instantly as you interact with the story. You don't need to turn pages or wait for new pages to load; everything happens on that page. SPAs are like this magic book. They load just one page initially, then magically change what's on it as you click buttons or interact with the app. This makes SPAs feel super fast because they don't need to fetch new pages from the web server every time you do something.

Why do people love SPAs so much?

• They're like reading a thrilling story in a magic book;
• They're lightning-fast because they don't make you wait for new pages to load;
• They feel more interactive because you can do things in real-time without waiting for new pages to arrive. It's like having the entire story in one place, ready to change as the plot unfolds.

React is a popular library for developing Single-page Applications (SPAs).