Web Development

A comprehensive guide to web development fundamentals, covering browser internals, networking protocols, and core web platform APIs essential for technical interviews and professional development.

Topics

Browser Architecture

How browsers work under the hood — rendering engines, JavaScript engines, the DOM and CSSOM, the critical rendering path, and the difference between reflow and repaint.

DOM

The Document Object Model — API methods, tree traversal, event propagation (bubbling and capturing), event delegation, and the Virtual DOM concept.

Cookies & Storage

Client-side storage mechanisms — cookies (with security flags), localStorage, sessionStorage, and IndexedDB. When to use each and their trade-offs.

CORS

Cross-Origin Resource Sharing — the same-origin policy, preflight requests, Access-Control headers, and debugging common CORS errors.

WebSockets

Real-time communication — the WebSocket protocol, connection handshake, comparison with Server-Sent Events and polling, and scaling strategies.

HTTP Fundamentals

The foundation of the web — HTTP methods, status codes, headers, and the evolution from HTTP/1.1 through HTTP/2 to HTTP/3.

Interview Questions

Curated web development interview questions covering all the above topics, with detailed answers.

How to Use This Section

1. Start with HTTP Fundamentals — understand the protocol that powers the web
2. Move to Browser Architecture — learn how browsers process and render pages
3. Deep dive into DOM — master the core API for manipulating web pages
4. Study storage and security — cookies, CORS, and the same-origin policy
5. Explore real-time communication — WebSockets and alternatives
6. Practice with Interview Questions — test your knowledge

Each topic includes practical examples, common pitfalls, and interview-relevant details.