node.js

Vinostics is our latest project and we’re proud to say it is one of a kind. As a matter of fact, it is the first marketplace dedicated exclusively to the US and Canada collision repair sector. Vinostics has two major components, one dedicated to body shops, which can open bids on the products they need and one dedicated to suppliers which can fulfill the open bids. Body shops can select the most competitive offers based on prices and product selection, saving big on their expenses.

Moreover, the marketplace offers a wide array of products from which body shops can choose and also allows manufacturers and distributors suggest alternative products if needed. Communication between body shops and suppliers/jobbers is ensured via web, text messages and email. We can say it’s more of a community than a classic marketplace. The database is huge, containing more than 15k products from the most prestigious brands, like 3M, Norton, Tork, Devilbiss, Carworks, Anest Iwata, Gerson, Fusor and more. From shop supplies and tools, like wipers, cans and racks, spray guns and sanders to consumables like abrasives, fillers, filters, compounds and safety items, Vinostics covers it all.

The marketplace is built using cutting edge tech, ensuring total security and a modern, attractive and intuitive UX. Shopify is used at the core, as it is perhaps the most reliable ecommerce platform, offering multiple options to sellers and buyers. The back-end uses Node.js, due to its cross-platform capabilities. The front-end is based on the Angular framework to deliver enhanced user experience. For the database we used Firestore, thanks to its scalable and flexible features. We added Prismic as CMS, allowing administrators update the platform quickly and easyily. The marketplace also uses a custom Algolia search engine, which provides accurate results on any query.

The Vinostics marketplace grows each day. Dozens of body shops and jobbers are using the platform as we speak placing orders and bids, getting in touch and getting jobs done. The Vinostics team is also proud of their platform and the job VerticalWave has done. They are second and third generation automotive craftsmen and merchants, with extensive know-how in the industry and the marketplace app is perfectly tailored to their needs.

Considered the ‘next gen’ of web development, MEAN Stack represents a collection of technologies that merge together perfectly in order to offer a a full-stack JavaScript implementation of web applications. Mean Stack consists of MongoDB, Express, AngularJS, and Node.js, hence the acronym MEAN.

These combined technologies allow for easy, intuitive and efficient development of scalable, user-friendly web applications which offer a new level of performance and reliability for the end user. And the flexibility and ease of use make MEAN Stack a powerful competitor against proven archetypal web service solution stacks such as LAMP. Comprised of Linux operating system, Apache HTTP Server, MySQL and PHP programming language, LAMP is still powerful, but starts losing ground in front of the MEAN newcomer.

And there are a few good reasons why MEAN Stack has the upper hand over LAMP in some particular areas. MongoDB is cloud-ready and offers reliable support and automatic replication over the cluster of servers, compared with MySQL, which might provide a strong relational database, but it’s a bit more restrictive, requiring data to be pushed into tables.

Another advantage of the new MEAN Stack is that Node.js simplifies the server layer. It does the work with some JavaScript and having everything in one layer prevents confusion and minimizes the occurrence of bugs. LAMP features multiple layers of navigation with various configuration files and differing syntax, which all combined can make a developer’s work quite difficult at times. Another advantage of Node.js is that it is faster, which makes it perfect for mobile apps.

AngularJS is another advantage of MEAN Stack. It adds consistency and stability by anointing one client framework, by allowing easy migration of code between content management systems and by allowing the coder work without hassle on the client’s side. LAMP benefits from solid PHP-based frameworks that work with MySQL, but has nothing to offer close to AngularJS.

Part of the developer community considers that LAMP might become obsolete in the near future. It’s not the case yet, as LAMP is still a reliable ‘player’, which has proven its efficiency over the years, but MEAN Stack is definitely a new, innovative, cutting-edge technology package that will most likely conquer the market soon.