Hello Framework! A heuristic method for choosing front-end JavaScript frameworks

Abstract: This thesis investigates how to decide what JavaScript framework to use when the front-end world is constantly changing and new technologies are added. Choosing the right framework can save a developer or company time, money and reduce complexity. An interview study with developers was done to extract what is important in a framework. The interview study concluded in six themes regarding what to investigate when choosing a framework along with a checklist and in-depth questions. Based on the results from the interview study together with a test application design, four web applications were implemented in the JavaScript frameworks React, Angular, Vue and Svelte. This was followed by a qualitative evaluation to see if this investigative approach provided meaningful insights. The test application results show that the combination of in-depth  questions and design specification gave a basic technical understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the frameworks together with an understanding of their history and current development. The goal of this thesis is to provide more ways of comparing frameworks in the front-end communities and academic world.