Getting Started with Next.js

Next.js is a React framework that enables server-side rendering and static site generation for React applications.

Why Next.js?

Hooks solve several problems in React:

• Server-side Rendering (SSR): Renders pages on the server, improving SEO and initial load performance.
• Static Site Generation (SSG): Pre-renders pages at build time for even faster performance.
• API Routes: Create API endpoints as part of your Next.js application.
• File-based Routing: Simple and intuitive routing based on the file system.
• Built-in CSS and Sass Support: Style your application with ease.

Setting Up a Next.js Project

npx create-next-app@latest my-next-app
cd my-next-app
npm run dev

Visit http://localhost:3000 to see your application in action.

Creating Pages

In Next.js, pages are React components exported from files in the pages directory (or app directory in the newer App Router).

// pages/index.js or app/page.js
export default function Home() {
  return (
    <div>
      <h1>Welcome to my Next.js website!</h1>
    </div>
  );
}

Conclusion

Next.js provides a powerful and flexible framework for building modern web applications with React. Its features like SSR, SSG, and file-based routing make it an excellent choice for a wide range of projects.