React is a big buzzword word right now. In fact, it has been a big buzz word for a few years now and with good reason. React has shot to meteoric success since its release in May 2013. Today I'll discuss 5 reasons to learn React.
1. Performance
React is lightning fast. React works by taking advantage of the Virtual DOM. The Virtual DOM is a lightweight, simplified version of the DOM.
When rendering a component, React does two things. First, it compares the DOM to the Virtual DOM in a process known as "DOM diffing". Then, it only updates the Elements in the DOM that have actually changed.
2. Small API
The React API is small. If you are in any way familiar with JavaScript, learning React won't take long. It is possible to build in React without touching on any advanced techniques.
Knowing React inside out is not necessary when getting started. If you want to be a React master though, it won't take long at all!
3. Documentation
React's documentation make learning it even easier. They are well structured and easy to follow. With the release of React v16, the documentation has been overhauled. Not only is it easy to follow, it's also easy on the eye.
Check the documentation out at reactjs.org.
4. React Native
Once you know how to user React, you also know how to use React Native. This alone should be reason enough to learn React.
React Native allows you to build iOS and Android apps using JavaScript. "Learn Once, Write Anywhere" is how the React team phrase it.
React Native makes it trivial to write native apps. It only requires a single codebase for both iOS and Android!
5. The React Community
Finally, one of the most compelling reasons to learn React is the community. The React community is vibrant and welcoming. The official community page is located at reactjs.org/community/support.html. Here you will find links to discussion forums, tutorials and the GitHub repo etc.
The large React community have already come up against any issue you are likely to run into. As a result, there are tens of thousands of 3rd party components available for use on GitHub.
Conclusion
Facebook built and maintains React. It sees widespread usage on Facebook's own website, so React isn't going away anytime soon. React skills are in demand right now and it's likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Start learning React today and you'll be building scalable front-end apps in no time.