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Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

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Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#31

Post by KaiserPro »

kraftman wrote: post #27
GnarfGnarf wrote: post #13

Yes, I am thriving with a niche C++/Win32 graphics app. Web apps are a long way from having the responsiveness and control of a desktop app. Do you really think users will be doing Photoshop and AutoCAD in a browser? No matter if you have a fibre op connection, the lag is always there. Recently the main player in this domain moved to Web apps. There was an overwhelming protest from its customers, who insisted they pr…

You don't need a fibre connection to run JS client side...

You do to get simulations working properly.

Also if you are offloading stuff to the cloud you need low latency.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#32

Post by mherrmann »

I'm just launching a file manager (https://fman.io). In general I'd say use web / SaaS whenever possible. If you do go with desktop, you may be interested in a blog post I just wrote about the technologies we ended up picking: https://fman.io/blog/picking-technologies-for-a-desktop-app-....

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#33

Post by windowsworkstoo »

i336_ wrote: post #9

From a desktop-application standpoint, the Web provides something very useful: easy upgrading. Like, you go to a URL, and if you aren't seeing the latest production revision of the site code, that's a bug. IMO, if you think you'll ever have edge cases where users might struggle to stay connected to the Web, think about doing a desktop app - but even then, consider using eg Electron/QTWebKit/similar so you can continu…

Yet the same feature can be a pain in the ass as you don't control your upgrade destiny. I know, I know, git orf mah lawn!

But when you see normal folks totally confused because the developer decided to "upgrade" their experience in a way that was totally out of the users hands, it can be cringey.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#34

Post by ownedthx »

DizzyDoo wrote: post #30
ownedthx wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mind sharing your stack?

Not at all. Unity is the engine I use, these engines are immensely valuable to developers like me, I can't invest years into building my own stable core right now, and although it has its rough edges and problems, it suits my projects very well. Builds to all sorts of targets, too. For my latest project I'm using the FMOD middleware for positional 3D audio. On the graphical asset side of things, I paint everything in…

Thanks!

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#36

Post by wilonth »

kraftman wrote: post #27
GnarfGnarf wrote: post #13

Yes, I am thriving with a niche C++/Win32 graphics app. Web apps are a long way from having the responsiveness and control of a desktop app. Do you really think users will be doing Photoshop and AutoCAD in a browser? No matter if you have a fibre op connection, the lag is always there. Recently the main player in this domain moved to Web apps. There was an overwhelming protest from its customers, who insisted they pr…

You don't need a fibre connection to run JS client side...

Right, but you can't write intensive algorithms and procedures in JS, because it would be very slow, you have to move those to the server side, which incurs the network lag.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#37

Post by edgytech »

It really depends on the usage of the application. What does it do? What features does it provide? What are the requirements of those features? You may need to consider a hybrid app, that has both a desktop component and a web service. If you can implement one or more of the features as a service, it will allow you to update them more easily. Also, keep in mind that a desktop app limits your install base to an OS, depending on its implementation, while an HTML5 application can be run almost anywhere.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#38

Post by jventura »

wslh wrote: post #18

One of my two small companies develop Windows development libraries for use in desktop and server applications and I see the native desktop apps doomed, except if you are targetting the enterprise (best in niche markets) and you know how to sell to enterprises. Rule of thumb #1: if you can build the same application for the desktop or the web, choose the web. Don't think more. My company does Windows drivers and some…

The application that I want to build is for a niche market (but not for companies), that is why I am in doubt between desktop and web.

One thing that makes me want to stay way from web is that if this thing does not work, I would like people to continue using the application, even if I don't update it anymore. If it runs on a server, I will not be able to stop the server until everyone stops using the application for some time. I know some people kill services without thinking too much, but this is a very small niche and my name is relatively known there..

The other reasons of wanting to stay way from web-only is that then I have to take care myself of everyones' data (think application data, settings, etc.); front-end web developments is a pain for me (too many options, none good) as I'm mainly a backend developer; and then there's the latency problem.

As I think I said above, my application is something like a productivity application, where everyone does his own thing and there's no intrinsic need for "social" or "sharing" things. The only reason I can think for web is discoverability, hence my doubts, if "discoverability" beats everything else (for desktop apps)..

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#39

Post by codecamper »

partisan wrote: post #2

This type of analysis paralysis will kill your project. > I have to think about the future, and so I have to try to make the right choice on this.. You don't have to make the right choice right now. For now, focus on getting something complete so that you can prove the idea out.

separation of concerns. Just write the logic in a fairly portable language.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone making a living off of desktop applications?

#40

Post by vladsanchez »

dejv wrote: post #7

I make living off desktop app in construction industry. The app is 21 years old and is still written in Delphi 5. I still actively maintaining it and it runs fairly well on modern Windows OSes, but there were some low level problems in recent years. We are team of two: I am sole developer and there is another person doing sales, support, training and all the rest of stuff.

Let me know if you need help. I belong to a network of Delphi devs that can join your cause. Cheers.
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