Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#1

Post by Jaruzel » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:31 PM UTC

Modern browsers these days are powerful things - almost an operating system in their own right. So I'm asking the community, should everything now be developed as 'web first', or is there still a place for native desktop applications?

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#2

Post by shams93 » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:34 PM UTC

Well the browser is still not good at things that say Blender or Protocols can do. Media pros still need desktop software for example audio latency in chrome is far too high to use it for any serious pro audio applications.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#3

Post by room505 » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:43 PM UTC

CAD and BIM

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#4

Post by mantas » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:58 PM UTC

Place? Absolutely. Developers will to provide quality apps and customers will to pay for them? Not so much...

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#5

Post by nikivi » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:58 PM UTC

Browsers have one huge problem and that is they override important hotkey space (like cmd+w, cmd+f for searching etc). So native apps will always provide a better experience.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#6

Post by mdrachuk » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:59 PM UTC

It does feel better to use a native app. Marketing as a "premium" product could work.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#7

Post by rbinv » Sun, May 17, 2020, 1:59 PM UTC

nikivi wrote: post #5

Browsers have one huge problem and that is they override important hotkey space (like cmd+w, cmd+f for searching etc). So native apps will always provide a better experience.

Google Docs actually hijacks CMD+F.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#8

Post by roel_v » Sun, May 17, 2020, 2:02 PM UTC

Lots of software would be better (from the user's POV) as a desktop app. However as a developer and as a software business owner/investor, it's (much) better to write web apps. So it depends on what you're asking here. Should you invest in desktop dev skills to further your career? No. Should you write your software idea as a desktop app if you want to make a business of it? Not if you can avoid it. If you're asking something else, well I guess the answer is 'maybe'.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#9

Post by teddyc » Sun, May 17, 2020, 2:05 PM UTC

I like a desktop app for uploading / syncing large files or directories to the cloud.

I'm sure there's a good web implementation out there for the Dropbox-style sync thing, I just haven't seen it yet.

Re: Ask HN: Is there still a place for native desktop apps?

#10

Post by samstave » Sun, May 17, 2020, 2:06 PM UTC

room505 wrote: post #3

CAD and BIM

Exactly what I came to say.

As someone who has used Autocad since Ver 9 (1993) this is important.

Also - heavy 3D design. Blender/Alias/whatever these days.

Solidworks as well.