Framework

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A framework is a collection of code used to solve a set of related use cases. Most frameworks focus on developer productivity at the expense of precise control.

Good frameworks:

• Are well documented
• Solve several closely related use cases.
• Are actively maintained
• Are extensible
• Don't change their interface often.

When deciding between using a framework or a library, ask:

• How much control do we have to give up? Is that OK for our current context?
• Which parts of the framework will we be using? A small sliver or most of it?
• How large of a surface area does the framework have?
• How much will we need to learn to be effective?

Some popular frameworks are:

• Ruby on Rails - A server side web application framework for interacting with databases and building web pages.
• jQuery - A front-end framework for manipulating web pages and interacting with web APIs

Frameworks are installed with a languages package manager such as gem, the Ruby package manager.