Essential Electron

Concise plain-speak about Electron.

Background
What is Electron?
Why is this important?
How, even?
What is developing like?
Development
Prereqs
Two Processes
Main Process
Renderer Process
Think of it like this
Development Cont'd
Stay in touch
Put it all together
Quick start
Packaging
More resources

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What is Electron?

Electron is a library you can use to build desktop applications with JavaScript, HTML and CSS. These applications can be packaged to run on Mac, Windows and Linux computers as well as be placed in the Mac and Windows app stores.

Next: Why is this important?

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Why is this important?

Typically, desktop applications for each operating system are written in each's native language. That can mean having three teams writing three versions of your app. Electron enables you to write your app once and with web languages.

Next: How, even?

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How, even?

Electron combines Chromium and Node.js with a set of custom APIs for native operating system functions like open file dialogs, notifications, icons and more.

Electron components

Next: What is developing like?

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What's developing like?

Developing with Electron is like building web pages that you can seamlessly use Node in—or building a Node app in which you can build an interface with HTML and CSS. And you only need to design for one browser, the latest Chrome.

Next: Prereqs

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Prereqs

Since Electron's two components are websites and JavaScript, you'll need experience in both of those before you begin. Check out some tutorials on HTML, CSS and JS and install Node on your computer.

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Next: Two Processes

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Two Processes

Electron has two types of processes: Main and Renderer. There are modules that work on each or in both of the processes. The main process is more behind-the-scenes while the renderer process is each of the windows in your app.

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Next: Main Process

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Main Process

The main process, commonly a file named main.js, is the entry point to every Electron app. It controls the life of the app, from open to close. It also calls the native elements and creates each new renderer process in the app. The full Node API is built in.

main process diagram

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Next: Renderer Process

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Renderer Process

The renderer process is a browser window in your app. Unlike the main process, there can be multiple of these and each is independent. They can also be hidden. Usually one is named index.html. They're like typical HTML files but in Electron you've got the whole Node API available here, too, unlike any web browser.

renderer process diagram

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Next: Think of it like this

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Think of it like this

In Chrome (or another web browser) each tab and its web page is like a single renderer process in Electron. If you close all of the tabs, Chrome is still there, this is like your main process, and you can open a new window or quit the app.

Chrome comparison of the two processes

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Next: Stay in touch

Stay in touch

The main and renderer processes need to be able to communicate since they're both responsible for different tasks. For that there's IPC, interprocess communication. Use it to pass messages between main and renderer processes.

IPC diagram

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Next: Put it all together

Put it all together

Electron apps are like Node apps and use a package.json file. It's there that you define which file is your main process and thus where Electron should start your app. Then that main process can create renderer processes and you'll use IPC to pass messages between the two.

Electron app components diagram

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Next: Quick start

Quick start

The Electron Quick Start repository is a bare-bones Electron app with the package.json, main.js and index.html you've learned about here—a great place to get started! Also, check out the boilerplates for templates with your framework of choice.

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Packaging

Once your app is built, you can package it with the command-line tool electron-packager for Mac, Windows or Linux. Add scripts for this to your package.json. Check out resources below for getting your app in the Mac and Windows app stores.

Next: More resources

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More resources

The concepts here will get you pretty far, but there is of course more so here are other resources.

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