Socket.IO Cookbook

Over 40 recipes to help you create real-time JavaScript applications using the robust Socket.IO framework

About This Book

• Create secure WebSocket connections and real-time mobile applications using Socket.IO
• Devise efficient messaging systems between the server side and the client side
• A step-by-step implementation guide to help you create elements of Socket.IO application

Who This Book Is For

If you have some knowledge of JavaScript and Node.js and want to create awe-inspiring application experiences using real time communication, then this book is for you. Developers with knowledge of other scripting languages should also be able to easily follow along.

What You Will Learn

• Build rich and interactive real-time dashboards using Socket.IO to pipe in data as it becomes available
• Design chat and multiple-person interfaces that leverage Socket.IO for communication
• Segment conversations to rooms and namespaces so that every socket doesn't have to receive every message
• Secure your data by implementing various authentication techniques, locking down the HTTP referrer and using secure WebSockets
• Load balance across multiple server-side nodes and keep your WebSockets in sync using Redis, RabbitMQ or Memcached
• Stream binary data such as audio and video in real-time over a Socket.IO connection
• Create real-time experiences outside of the browser by integrating Socket.IO with hybrid mobile applications

In Detail

Socket.IO is a JavaScript library that provides you with the ability to implement real-time analytics, binary streaming, instant messaging, and document collaboration. It has two parts: a client-side library that runs in the browser, and a server-side library for node.js. Socket.IO is event-driven and primarily uses the WebSocket protocol that allows us to emit data bi-directionally from the server and the client. Socket.IO

This book is a complete resource, covering topics from webSocket security to scaling the server-side of a Socket.IO application and everything in between.

This book will provide real-world examples of how secure bi-directional, full-duplex connections that can be created using Socket.IO for different environments. It will also explain how the connection vulnerabilities can be resolved for large numbers of users and huge amounts of data/messages.

By the end of the book, you will be a competent Socket.IO developer. With the help of the examples and real-world solutions,you will learn to create fast, scalable, and dynamic real-time apps by creating efficient messaging systems between the server side and the client side using Socket.IO.

Style and approach

This book is written in a cookbook-style format and provides practical, immediately usable task-based recipes that show you how to create the elements of a Socket.IO application.

Tyson Cadenhead

Tyson Cadenhead works as a senior JavaScript engineer at Aloompa in Nashville, Tennessee. He has dedicated his professional career to building large-scale applications in JavaScript and Node. Tyson addresses audiences at various conferences and programming meetups on how to build real-time web applications with Socket.IO or Meteor.js. He blogs on topics such as JavaScript and web technologies at http://www.tysoncadenhead.com. Tyson lives in the greater Nashville area with his wife and two sons, where he enjoys gardening, raising chickens, reading philosophy and economics books, and playing guitar.