Blocking I/O vs Non-blocking I/O
Developers should learn blocking I/O for scenarios where simplicity and straightforward control flow are prioritized, such as in single-threaded applications, scripts, or low-concurrency systems where I/O latency is minimal meets developers should learn and use non-blocking i/o when building applications that require high concurrency and low latency, such as web servers, real-time systems, or data-intensive services. Here's our take.
Blocking I/O
Developers should learn blocking I/O for scenarios where simplicity and straightforward control flow are prioritized, such as in single-threaded applications, scripts, or low-concurrency systems where I/O latency is minimal
Blocking I/O
Nice PickDevelopers should learn blocking I/O for scenarios where simplicity and straightforward control flow are prioritized, such as in single-threaded applications, scripts, or low-concurrency systems where I/O latency is minimal
Pros
- +It is useful in educational contexts to understand basic I/O handling before moving to more complex asynchronous models, and in legacy systems or libraries that rely on synchronous APIs
- +Related to: non-blocking-io, asynchronous-programming
Cons
- -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case
Non-blocking I/O
Developers should learn and use non-blocking I/O when building applications that require high concurrency and low latency, such as web servers, real-time systems, or data-intensive services
Pros
- +It is particularly valuable in environments like Node
- +Related to: event-loop, asynchronous-programming
Cons
- -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case
The Verdict
Use Blocking I/O if: You want it is useful in educational contexts to understand basic i/o handling before moving to more complex asynchronous models, and in legacy systems or libraries that rely on synchronous apis and can live with specific tradeoffs depend on your use case.
Use Non-blocking I/O if: You prioritize it is particularly valuable in environments like node over what Blocking I/O offers.
Developers should learn blocking I/O for scenarios where simplicity and straightforward control flow are prioritized, such as in single-threaded applications, scripts, or low-concurrency systems where I/O latency is minimal
Disagree with our pick? nice@nicepick.dev