October 1, 2015
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Ionic Bonds: Introducing the New Web Client

Max Lynch

CEO

ionic-io-init-animation

Welcome to the latest installment of the Ionic Bonds series, with regular updates on Ionic’s Platform Services.

The latest batch of updates for the Ionic Platform have landed, and I am very excited to introduce the new web client! This new service module has a lot going for it: future-proofed ECMAScript 6 support, no dependencies, and it’s all bundled as a single include for your app!

We weren’t happy with the way the ionic-service components were being handled, and because a unifying update was in order, we decided to take it a step further. Not only is the entire Ionic Platform library housed in a single repository, we’re leveraging the future of web standards with ECMAScript 6 (don’t worry; no change is needed on your end). With the new Platform library, we’ve set up a great foundation for future services and updates.

But why should you care?

You told us you want things to be easy. Easy is good.

Check this out:

var push = new Ionic.Push();
push.register(callback);

See that? point-up-ssm That’s a completely functional Ionic app leveraging the push notification service. Gone are the days of managing API keys by hand. No more remembering injections for your controllers! It Just Works, and we’ve done the same thing for every single Ionic Platform service in this update.

You may also notice the code above doesn’t use Angular. Don’t panic. All of the Angular factories you’re accustomed to using with the Ionic Platform still exist; they’re just not required anymore.

What you can expect

Quite a bit, actually. A lot of improvements are now live, and we think you’re going to love them. Here’s the short list:

  • Streamlined Installation. There’s only a single module to install, no matter what service you’re using.
  • A new Push class that integrates with the latest phonegap-plugin-push and provides a consistent interface between iOS and Android.
  • A new User model that puts you in control of your users and even gives you the ability to store your own custom data.

How do I get started?

First of all, update your CLI:

npm install -g ionic

Now, check out our new docs, and jump in!

So, what’s next?

Looking forward, we’re going fully heads down to document and expand the Platform APIs. We want to give our docs some love, to make sure the Ionic Platform is as easy to jump into as the Ionic Framework.

Oh, and one more thing. We’re gift-wrapping a special package for our Ionic Platform users, and we can’t wait to tell you all about it! Keep an eye on the blog to be the first to know what we’ve got up our sleeves!


Max Lynch

CEO