In software, what’s the difference between a Framework, a Library, an Environment etc?

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I understand what a language is, stuff like Python, Java, Javascript, Swift etc. And I understand what an IDE is, it’s basically an advanced text editor tailored to helping you with writing code.

But I’m lost after that. I’ve heard that react is a framework? Is that because it’s kind of an add-on to JavaScript? If so, how is that different to a package or a Library? Or is a framework a type of library? Where do things like Spring, or Gradle or Flutter fit into this as well? Until recently, I thought Flutter was a language, but now I’m learning that the language might be Dart?

I’ve finished a full degree in Computer Science, and have been in Software Development for over a year now, but this has become no less clear to me.

In: Technology

10 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

A general difference between a library and a framework seems to be “your code calls library code; framework code calls your code”. React is called a framework, because you are supposed to write component classes/functions, which would then be called by the framework, when the user navigates to a certain URL.

That being said, frameworks usually contain a lot of functions and classes that you call/instantiate from your code and most coders will call the whole thing “a framework”.

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