Over the past few years, more and more web developers and designers have embraced the usefulness of WordPress in creating functional web applications. A few years back, the notion that reigned supreme was that WordPress can be used only for content management and blogging purposes. But, the scenario is different today. Now, WordPress is widely considered as a powerful platform for building database-packed web apps. Using this versatile and excellent platform, you can make your custom web application development project a success.

Benefits of WordPress Web Application >

If you haven’t explored the multi-faced side of WordPress, let me tell you that you are missing out something really helpful in the process of creating web apps.

You should know that WordPress offers:

• A powerful database equipped with a flexible data schema.
• A core application layer featuring several hooks that you can easily utilize to strengthen your custom web application development.
• The capacity to manage numerous significant tasks like, managing server-side client-side, administrator-facing and user-facing aspects.

But, it should be kept in mind that WordPress is not a fitting solution for everything. Having said that now, let me clarify that WordPress is first of all not a framework. WordPress is a foundation. Are you wondering why? Then, take a look at the following discussion.

A framework helps in custom web application development from the scratch while a foundation helps to enhance the features and usability of an application. WordPress offers

• A pre-defined database
• Pre-defined set of APIs and conventions
• Template system

So, it is like utilizing an already existing database structure to manage the custom web application development process. For example, you can make use of templates to provide information, use the APIs to confirm data and use the hooks in the core application layer to apply the necessary functionality required to establish interaction with the users.

How to use WordPress for Web Application Development >

There are three layers in web application development – the database layer, the application layer and the presentation layer. The database layer in WordPress is a MySQL database. On the other hand, the application layer is coded in PHP and the presentation layer uses the standard CSS, jQuery and HTML. This architecture is used in making a web app and you have the flexibility to use your own libraries that will trigger slight changes throughout the process.

WordPress makes use of an event-driven method and not the model-view control panel pattern. The event-driven pattern works more or less like the following.

• In the first place, the view functions as the presentation which means user views information and communicate with the user interface.
• In the second place, the controllers synchronize data to and from the pattern and the view. The controllers answer to user actions, and recover data from the pattern to break into the view.
• In the third place, the pattern embodies the information in the database. Although it can be executed using many other methods, the most common and helpful way is to chart the information in the database in an object-relational format to make sure that the information is embodied in a pattern of objects.

Conclusion:

Apart from the views and information objects, event-driven pattern followed by WordPress differentiates from the above in the case that it does not feature controllers or a medium that synchronizes data from the front-end to back-end.

As already stated earlier, WordPress offers hooks that are nothing but steps in implementation where you can apply your individuality and introduce your own libraries.

So, from now, do not always stick to other frameworks and foundations when building a web app. Keep WordPress in consideration, weigh its advantages and use it as the outline for your custom web application development project.