February 2016 Summaries

Firebase has launched a Slack community intended to connect developers for discussions about Firebase, including app ideas, data modeling, feature requests, troubleshooting, and general feedback. The community will include Firebase Google Developer Experts, contributors to projects such as AngularFire, Firebase team members, and other developers, with an emphasis on peer learning and informal interaction. Organizers aim to build a diverse, respectful community governed by a published Code of Conduct, and interested participants can join through an invitation website by submitting their email address and confirming the invitation.

Firebase announced Firecasts, a weekly hands-on YouTube screencast series designed to help developers build real-time applications for Android, iOS, and the web. Although its first episode focuses on Android, the series plans to include iOS and web content, reflecting a platform-agnostic approach. Firebase also invites viewers to suggest future topics through the #AskFirebase hashtag, emphasizing interactive, practice-based learning.

Firebase responds to Parse’s shutdown by expressing support for the developer community and reaffirming its commitment to improving app development following its integration with Google. The company highlights progress including simpler pricing, offline support for iOS and Android, FirebaseUI, AngularFire 1.0, Firebase Hosting through the Divshot acquisition, App Engine support for its JVM client, Unity3D preview support, and an Udacity course. While Firebase notes that no simple migration path exists from Parse Core to the Firebase Realtime Database because of differing data models and APIs, it recommends running Parse Server on Google App Engine as an alternative. Firebase states that Parse’s closure does not alter its roadmap and that it plans to continue expanding its integration with Google’s developer ecosystem.

Firebase is presenting the third annual Static Showdown hackathon, a worldwide virtual competition taking place February 20–21, 2016. Teams of up to four participants will have 48 hours to create a web application using only HTML, JavaScript, CSS, and third-party backend services such as Firebase Database, without writing custom server-side code. Registration is open, and the event continues a tradition begun by Divshot that has previously produced projects ranging from music synthesizers to social networks.