Aren't all programs just wrappers around kernel calls?
Really, it's all just wrappers around the strong nuclear force.
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Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
41–50 of 57 posts
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#42How it is implemented is completely irrelevant to users, something developers tend to forget. The merit and validation comes from customers (or lack thereof)
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#43The problem is not with some product being a "wrapper" around something else. The problem is when the product adds nothing else of value to that underlying resource. GPT wrappers may add window dressing, but ultimately are just sending input to an LLM and regurgitating the output.
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#44The "hate" is for apps that only pre-package the GPT with a pre-written prompt and don't do much else. And the reason is, I think, because simply making a prompt template is usually not a significant enough value-add except for the most untechnical users. Most users can solve their problems just chatting with the GPT directly. To get to the first part of your question: no. Every SaaS I've worked on for instance has i…
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Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#45It's because they add almost zero value over just calling the APIs yourself or using an open source electron app that does. That doesn't mean they can't provide value to the average Joe, but for the technically inclined like HN's (or even Reddit's) audience they just look like cynical cash grabs.
If you take a look at products like the Cursor IDE, they're also "just" wrappers around OpenAI and Anthropic API calls but they've put a lot of work integrating them into VSCode in a way that a) adds a lot of value and b) can't be replicated by a competent developer in a weekend. There's nothing wrong with selling a product you made in a weekend, but if it's that simple chances are there's an open source equivalent that's just a github search away.
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#46Most SaaS is a UI in front of a SQL database with a few services built around it. Sometimes these services are quite minimal. Sometimes it really is just a UI for a database with not much else. The fact that it earns so much shows that the thing people pay for, for the most part, is usability and convenience... as if Apple being the most valuable company in the world for a while didn't already illustrate that.
Agreed. It's also true for most social platforms.
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#47If you think about it, all software is already an abstraction of hardware by definition. The real debate might be whether AI is the core technology driving a SaaS product or just an add-on to keep up with current trends. For example, SaaS products used to classify marathon runners’ images likely rely heavily on computer vision AI models—without them, the task would be extremely tedious. On the other hand, AI summariz…
> If you think about it, all software is already an abstraction of hardware by definition. Not really—interaction with a lot of hardware is defined by software. Just looking at a cpu you have no clue how someone would use it or what they would use it for or even what kind of capabilities it has for human interaction.
Isn't software itself an abstraction layer to communicate with the underlying physical components? In theory, it's possible to build a machine that solves a problem without any software at all. Isn't this what an automaton represents—hardware directly engineered to perform specific tasks without the need for software?
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#48I'm writing a book (https://opinionatedlaunch.com/) on building and running subscription-based mobile apps (so, SaaS) from a technical implementation perspective (as opposed to a marketing or "startup" book). The book's case study is an app that generates PDF certificates for webinars. I chose that idea because it's straightforward, so people can focus on the book's lessons (e.g., "You want Google login like in the app? Check page 15").
Generating PDFs is very easy. You can either call some other SaaS' API (free plan available) or roll your own using Puppeteer (this is what I use). BUT to make it a full-fledged SaaS, you need to do more work than just that I-can-build-over-the-weekend thing:
* Signups and logins (email/password login, forgot password, Google login, Apple login if you use Google login on iPhone).
* Onboarding screens for new users.
* Show stats to make people think it's worth paying for your app.
* Subscription: handling trials, integration with App/Play Store, and downgrades/upgrades.
* Automatic sub-domain and custom domain tenancy (e.g. acme-inc.myapp.com).
* Email: SPF, DKIM, DMARC, email templating, copy, compatibility with different email clients.
* Push notification.
* Android, iOS and Web versions of your app.
* Integration with Zapier so your app won't be a silo.
* Even things you probably don't think important: Store page with nice screenshots and good copywriting, a nice app icon that doesn't look like it's designed by a programmer.
* Oh God, the website for your app, the dreaded marketing copy, a pricing page, knowledge base, and blog.
* Chat bubble in the bottom right of your website and email routing for customer support.
* Social media presence *shudder*. If you think it's as simple as creating account in X and setting reminders to post content, think again.
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If you think about it, all software is already an abstraction of hardware by definition. Not really—interaction with a lot of hardware is defined by software. Just looking at a cpu you have no clue how someone would use it or what they would use it for or even what kind of capabilities it has for human interaction.
Isn't software itself an abstraction layer to communicate with the underlying physical components? In theory, it's possible to build a machine that solves a problem without any software at all. Isn't this what an automaton represents—hardware directly engineered to perform specific tasks without the need for software?
> Isn't hardware itself an abstraction layer to communicate with the underlying physical components?
Sure, but you're really straining the word "abstraction" here. By this definition all metaphysical concepts are just abstractions around material reality. Which is fine, albeit not that useful a definition of abstraction.
Re: Ask HN: Isn't all SaaS just wrappers?
#50SaaS is EXPLICITLY a software provided to you as a service. You could just run the software. This is no great secret.