Real-time communication is no longer a “nice-to-have” feature in modern web development—it is the baseline. From AI-driven chat interfaces and live collaborative whiteboards to financial tickers and IoT dashboards, the demand for bi-directional, low-latency communication is higher than ever.
For years, the standard PHP request-response lifecycle (the “share-nothing” architecture) has served us well. However, as modern web applications demand instantaneous feedback—think live notifications, collaborative editing, and chat apps—the traditional HTTP model struggles.
Introduction # In the fast-paced landscape of 2025, “refreshing the page” is a relic of the past. Whether you are building a crypto trading dashboard, a live collaborative editing tool, or a simple customer support chat, your users expect data to flow instantly. They expect real-time interaction.
In the landscape of modern web development, “refreshing the page” is an archaic concept. Whether it’s a stock trading dashboard, a collaborative document editor, or a simple notification feed, users in 2025 expect data to flow instantly.