Why is Node.js so popular?
The official definition of Node.js is very simple, but it doesn’t explain why Node.js has become so popular over time:
In Figure 1.1, we can see how the popularity of Node.js has been increasing over time, and even today, it is still growing fast.
Figure 1.1 – The interest in Node.js, generated using Google Trends
Next, let’s explore the main reasons why Node.js is so popular.
Lightweight and fast
Node.js is a lightweight and fast runtime based on the V8 JavaScript engine, which is the same engine that powers Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, among others. It is based on a single-thread architecture and event-driven model, which means that it doesn’t need to create a new thread for each request, as in other popular tools such as PHP. This is a huge advantage because the memory consumption is...
