Compare Polymer vs. React

The Polymer library offers a robust set of functionalities for developing custom elements, streamlining the process to ensure they behave like standard DOM elements. Just like conventional DOM elements, Polymer elements can be created through a constructor or by utilizing document creation methods, and they can be configured via attributes or properties. Each instance can contain an internal DOM, adapt to changes in properties and attributes, and receive styling both from internal defaults and external sources, all while responding to methods that alter their internal state. When you register a custom element, you link a class to a specific custom element name, and the element includes lifecycle callbacks to effectively manage its various stages. Additionally, Polymer facilitates property declarations, allowing for seamless integration of your element's property API with the Polymer data system. By employing Shadow DOM, your element gains a locally scoped and encapsulated DOM tree, and Polymer can automatically generate and fill a shadow tree for your element derived from a DOM template, enhancing the modularity and reusability of your code. This combination of features not only simplifies the creation of custom elements but also ensures they integrate smoothly into the wider ecosystem of web components.

React simplifies the process of building interactive user interfaces by allowing developers to design straightforward views for each state of their application. When your data changes, React intelligently updates and renders only the components that need to be altered, ensuring efficiency. The use of declarative views contributes to a more predictable coding experience and facilitates debugging. You can create self-contained components that maintain their own state and combine them to construct intricate UIs. Since the logic for these components is implemented in JavaScript rather than templates, it allows for seamless data transfer throughout the application while keeping the state separate from the DOM. React does not impose restrictions on your technology stack, enabling you to introduce new features in React without the necessity of overhauling your existing codebase. Each React component features a render() method that accepts input data and determines what should be displayed. This particular example employs an XML-like syntax known as JSX, and the input data provided to the component can be accessed through this.props within the render() method. Overall, this flexibility makes React a powerful tool for modern web development.