The Reasons Why Enterprises Prefer
Ext JS

Today’s world demands a lot from successful companies. It’s not enough to just keep your head above water; you need to be valued by the customers. Creating a perfect product that meets the client’s top requirements is the right thing to reach success. Which framework is better to use to create such a product? A paid or a free one? How would you benefit at the end of the day?

Speaking about the enterprises, they always strive to make inner processes as smooth as possible. They value time and know how much it costs. That is why the software companies refer to the Ext JS framework when they need to create something complex yet user-friendly. Do you want to find out how to benefit from spending money on expensive software? If you want to know how big and successful companies create their software products, keep on reading!

Table of Contents

1. The Essence of Ext JS and its Components
2. Why do Enterprises Choose Ext JS Instead of Free, Open-source Frameworks?
3. What are the Benefits?
4. The Area of Use
5. Conclusion

The Essence of Ext JS and its Components

Ext JS is a well-known JavaScript framework that is mostly used to create complex web and mobile applications for different devices. Its UI components count over 140 pieces and include grids, forms, trees, menus, HTML5 calendar, panels, you name it! What else could a developer wish when working on complex software for an enterprise? Such an extensive library is a real treasure because it speeds up the development process and makes the end product perfect for its users.

So, what is it about enterprise-grade software? This type of software stands apart from all the other types. Such applications are very sophisticated and usually labor-intensive. For instance, a document management system may take a significant amount of time to be developed and completely tested. Enterprise-level applications are all about automating inner business processes and improving a company’s efficiency.

Let’s analyze some specific software to understand better why big companies choose Ext JS for complex projects. Let’s say that we have a rapidly growing company that specializes in retail. They’ve got a huge online platform where they sell tons of different items - from nails to a car. They have millions of customers and an enormous amount of orders every day. This company just can’t exist without a specific system that would organize all the processes related to storing, selling, buying, etc. Could you imagine how extensive this software would have to be to cover their needs? Let’s say it’s an order management system that has to deal with the payment processes, shipping goods, stock count, purchase of new goods, etc. So, this system may require many different components, e.g., a grid to sort and group orders, items, payments, etc., an exporter to create reports, layouts to make every element look good, and so on.

So, how will Ext JS make everything simpler for you? Every component is ready for use as it is, no need to code from scratch. This saves a great amount of time and ensures you’ll stick to deadlines and launch your product in time.

Why do Enterprises Choose Ext JS Instead of Free, Open-source Frameworks?

Ext JS is a common choice for most enterprise-grade projects. Why? It allows you to save time on development and make the process easier, there are no compatibility issues, many multiplatform advantages, and you get great support services from Sencha. And frankly, none of the free frameworks do the job better than Ext JS because none of them possess the power and convenience that the Ext JS framework does. Of course, we can compare it with several free, open-source frameworks, but it would be pointless to do so. For me, it’s like explaining why using a stove is easier and more comfortable than picking wood, starting a fire with no matches, and so on.

Just look at these giants who prefer Ext JS over others: Apple, Adobe, Cisco, Microsoft, Nvidia, Samsung, and others. All their products are extremely user-friendly, effective, and visually appealing. This was achieved thanks to the extensive components library that is optimized for desktop and mobile devices. Both types of applications can be easily themed, and that’s what makes every brand unique.

I can talk about this framework for hours, but let’s start with its plus points. Then we’ll move forward with some examples that may be rated as the Ext JS’s substitute.

So, the Ext JS advantages are pretty obvious:

• Faster Development Process

Considering that EXT JS has multiple UI components ready to use, this cuts the time spent on software development. Consequently, this pro allows companies to save money and stay within their budget.

• Fast and Easy Prototyping

With the help of Sencha’s “designer” tool, developing a prototype takes much less time when compared to a project done from scratch.

• No Compatibility Issues

When working with DOM manipulation methods, you can easily face some issues related to browser compatibility. However, Ext JS foresaw this and took measures. Though you can utilize JQuery or something similar, Ext JS's advantage lies in multiple UI components that go along with it.

• The Value of Integrated Tools

The main purpose of the Ext JS framework is to allow developers to design perfect and scalable web apps. With all of Sencha’s components and additional tools, you can significantly speed up the software development process. Everything is meant to work together very smoothly.

In comparison, some other frameworks are only microframeworks and provide the developer with one small part of the solution needed for the app development. So, consequently, very often they have to stitch other frameworks and libraries together. That is a long road to the final result that requires more effort, time, and resources.

• Sencha’s Support

The Ext JS support team works very quickly. Once you’ve posted a question or an issue on their forum or sent an email, the working solution is to be delivered to you ASAP. That is a great option to save time on software development. You’re never stuck with your issue since Sencha’s community has a huge forum where any question can be answered in no time.

Unfortunately, such a thing is very rare for free, open-source frameworks. Some of them have no support at all. So, one of the few options you have is to ask other experienced developers a question somewhere on the Internet and hope to receive an answer.

So, if you, for some reason, don’t want to use Ext JS, you could switch to something else, e.g. Blueprint, react-md, Angular and Angular UI, etc. However, as I said, other options aren’t as complete and efficient as Ext JS so it’s not right to compare it with other JS frameworks.

What are the Benefits?

For many years already, big companies prefer Ext JS to other frameworks. And there are multiple reasons for it. Enterprise developers value it for accessibility, ease of use, and flexibility. While the big companies, on the other hand, always keep in mind that such an approach in development will save precious time, effort, and money.

Now, let’s look deeper into the main benefits of using Ext JS for complex projects.

• Higher team productivity

Utilizing Ext JS increases the development team efficiency. It easily integrates into the dev environments through IDE plugins.

• Lower development costs

Ext JS framework is a box solution, which means everything you need is in one place. There is no need to look for complex options or reinvent the wheel; you just choose what you need and take it. This significantly saves time for the end-product development and, as a result, allows you to stay within the budget.

• High-quality product

Thanks to the extensive library that contains different types of UI components, you’re able to receive a perfect product in the end. No matter who are the end-users of it, your employees, or your clients, Ext JS will ensure the user experience is at its highest. The complex and professional widgets will create a compelling UI.

• Always up-to-date

Sencha ensures Ext JS gets regular updates. That is especially valuable by those who are involved in the development process at first hand. The updated framework offers new options for integration, enriched code libraries, and new APIs. Regular updates ensure the environment you work in is stable and secure.

The Area of Use

As I have already mentioned, the Ext JS framework is more often used to develop complex projects. And such a choice isn’t groundless at all. Since most big companies can’t afford to spend years on product development, they refer to solutions that could significantly reduce developer’s time and effort. Since Ext JS is one of those solutions, it’s widely used to create such extensive and complex systems as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), CRM (Customer Relationship Management), CMS (Content Management System), OMS (Order Management System), etc. Each of these software types has certain requirements and objectives behind it, so here we’re going to analyze them in detail.

ERP

Resource planning is an essential part of every successful enterprise. ERP systems are designed to manage and improve the whole company’s performance and efficiency. Companies often refer to off-the-shelf solutions as NetSuite or Sap; however, most enterprises choose to create a custom system from scratch. One of the most common ways to do that is to use the Sencha Ext JS framework.

Our company’s Ext JS journey started 10 years ago. We were engaged in a large project - developing PaaS that enables users to quickly create enterprise-grade apps (like Customer-centric apps, Case-centric apps, Asset-centric apps, etc.) In other words, this is the platform that generates applications. Therefore, a full set of components is usually utilized when creating such software as we can’t predict what kinds of components are going to be necessary.

The software was being developed from scratch and with Telerik components. At some point, we realized that this framework was not enough for such a project, and it was decided to switch to Ext JS. The difference between those two frameworks was significant, and it definitely impacted the final result. At the end of the day, we’ve created a slick application loved by the client and saved them both time and money.

CRM

In today’s business world, companies automate every process they can, as time is money. You’ll hardly find a sales team that still uses papers instead of specialized software. Most organizations that are into selling products or services refer to the CRM systems. Such a system is a great option for those who want to improve ROI and strengthen relationships with the customers.

So, just like with all the complex systems, CRM also needs a special approach when being developed. If you know your inner processes very well and none of the products existing on the market fit you, the best option is to create your app. Since this type of software includes graphs, tables, grids, trees, etc., the Ext JS framework will be a well-suited option for that.

CMS

I believe, especially now, in the pandemic, content management systems are extremely popular. Starting from 2020, people understood that content is essential for every business. Enterprises have a huge amount of different content to work with. So, CMS is a must in such cases as it helps the user develop, manage, and edit the website content even without any special tech knowledge. This means content managers can run a blog or update current website pages on their own. Such an approach helps save on additional resources and optimize the process (as there is no need to pull a developer away from the more critical tasks).

There are several available off-the-shelf solutions on the market. Still, there are cases when you need to develop your system. If that’s your case, again, Ext JS will be the best decision. Thanks to the large library, you’ll be able to find all the necessary components and create a product that perfectly fits your needs.

OMS

We know what it means for a business to automate many processes at a time, especially the selling and shipping ones. Once you’ve automated your systems, you’ve got more time to spend on existing and new customers.

Several years ago, we developed a bespoke OMS for one of our clients. They required a specialized application that would process a huge amount of data. So, considering all the client’s needs and requirements, we’ve decided to develop it with Ext JS. We used multiple UI components: grids, charts, exporters, tables, different layouts, toolbars, a calendar, and many others. Since Sencha’s product offers ready components, the development of this OMS took us less time than we expected and it exceeded all expectations in every way.

Conclusion

To sum up, I’d like to say once again that Ext JS is a perfect framework for those who need to create custom software within a short time and with less effort. It does have a paid license, but it will pay off as soon as you launch the product. The Ext JS framework is what guarantees a fast launch, perfect run, and reliable support. It does not matter whether you create a product for your company or clients - the end result will speak for itself.