> If you've ever had to fight with an app framework
... it usually means it’s the wrong tool for the job.
I have to ask, why not a native app? Once you start bypassing every browser feature anyway, what’s the point of using a browser?
... it usually means it’s the wrong tool for the job.
I have to ask, why not a native app? Once you start bypassing every browser feature anyway, what’s the point of using a browser?
1. Mobile-first, mobile-only apps.
2. Minecraft or really any game.
3. The proliferation of Electron apps that are basically downloadable versions of the website.
4. Apple's own suite of apps. Keynote is pretty darn popular.
In the case of a user who is really, really unmotivated to comment on a doc, sure. Then every click, every second counts because the user doesn't really have a fixed need to complete the task to begin with. For most other things, users are willing to download apps and may even prefer it.
It's also worth considering that Writely/Docs never really supplanted Word and is still rather feature poor even after a decade of continuous development, perhaps because they keep having to rewrite the rendering engine. If Docs was a downloadable app with a simple web-side static renderer + commenting engine, it might have obtained features that could offset any loss of casual users due to needing a download to collaborate. Especially if the download was fast, tight and transparent.
While Docs hits 95% of my needs there's still that 5% and I suspect most of those are held back by the current implementation architecture. Hopefully moving to a Canvas based system will enable them to more easily add complex features.
I am not sure what has held gSuite back all these years, but the pandemic seems to have brought them out of their slumber.