Book structure

This book aims to help JavaScript developers who have zero-to-some experience with the MERN stack, to set up and start developing web applications of varying complexity. It includes guidelines for building out and running the different applications supplemented with code snippets and explanations of key concepts.

The book is organized into five parts, progressing from basic to advanced topics, taking you on a journey of building MERN from the ground up, then using it to develop different applications with simple to complex features, while demonstrating how to extend the capabilities of the MERN stack based on application requirements.

Getting started with MERN

Chapter 1, Unleashing React Applications with MERN and Chapter 2, Preparing the Development Environment set the context for developing web applications in a MERN stack and guide you through setting up your development environment.

Building MERN from the ground up – a skeleton application

Chapter 3, Building a Backend with MongoDB, Express, and Node and Chapter 4, Adding a React Frontend to Complete MERN show how to bring the MERN stack technologies together to form a skeleton web application with minimal and basic features. This skeletal MERN application acts as a base for the four main applications developed in the rest of the book.

Developing basic web applications with MERN

In this part, you will become familiar with the core attributes of a MERN stack web application by building out two real-world applications—a simple social media platform in Chapter 5, Starting with a Simple Social Media Application, and an online marketplace in Chapter 6, Exercising New MERN Skills with an Online Marketplace and Chapter 7, Extending the Marketplace for Orders and Payments.

Advancing to complex MERN applications

Chapter 8, Building a Media Streaming Application, Chapter 9, Customizing Media Player and Improve SEO, Chapter 10, Developing a Web-Based VR Game, and Chapter 11, Making the VR Game Dynamic using MERN show how this stack can be used to develop applications with more complex and immersive features, such as media streaming and virtual reality using React 360.

Going forward with MERN

Finally Chapter 12, Following Best Practices and Developing MERN Further wraps up the preceding chapters and applications developed by expanding on best practices to follow to make successful MERN applications, suggesting improvements and further developments.

You may choose to use the book out of the prescribed order based on your experience level and preference. A developer who is very new to MERN can follow the path set out in the book. For a more seasoned JS developer, the chapters in the Building MERN from the ground up - a skeleton application section would be a good place to start setting up the base application, then pick any of the four applications to build and extend.