With back-end development, we can create ways to manage data. Meaning we can write APIs to fill databases, write webhooks and implement them, or create fast scalable back-end environments.
As the layer between the database and a website or webapp, there is the back-end that gathers and sends data between the two. Here we primarily use Node.js to hook our development up.
We use databases like MongoDB, PostgresQL and Firebase to read, write and exchange vast amounts of data. The choice of database depends entirely on the project and needs of our client. Our databases are offline by default meaning hackers will never be able to access them directly.
When working with vast amounts of data we use Elastic search to keep searching, filtering and sorting fast when gathering data from the database we use.
Real-time databases like Firebase allow us to, for example, build a chat service in a whim. These databases are created and maintained in online environments by companies like Google. For more custom applications, we implement technologies like WebSockets, Server-Sent Events (SSE) or WebRTC.
Whether it's creating or consuming data through APIs, or creating an actual API, we do this on the daily. Our preferred method is GraphQL, but your typical REST API is no stranger to us as well.
GraphQL is a newer way to get data from your back-end. Before GraphQL the standard was that you could only ask for ALL the data, now we can ask for just the data we need, making data transfers smaller and the back-end faster.