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Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

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Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#71

Post by Fragoel2 »

I found the article really hard to read, the author took a long and convoluted path to expose his ideas.

As for the question that the article raises, there are probably many co-occurring reasons, and a lot of comments make good points. However, one that I couldn't find listed is IMHO performance. I still find web apps (and web sites) to feel really sluggish and slow on everything that is not a top-tier phone. Again, many reasons for this (JavaScript bloat, tracking, intermittent connectivity, ...) but the user experience is just not the same.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#72

Post by fendy3002 »

The web took over desktop when browsers functionality approaches those of desktops. Almost every desktop apps are now in web or electron, with some interesting exceptions that I know of:

1. graphic / gpu intensive apps 2. memory / cpu intensive apps 3. background process / push notif apps

Both point 1 and 2 can easily be games, which is why most of them are still in native apps. I think (cmiiw) webassembly is trying to tackle this.

Now the 3rd point is, IMO the strongest reason that makes browser-based apps cannot penetrate mobile native beside ux, performance and lacking functionality for web in mobile. People in their mobile simply cannot run browser all the time in background for process and push notif. It's far easier with native apps.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#73

Post by lotsofpulp »

radicalbyte wrote: post #40
radicalbyte wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Only that's not how the world works. The world works with power: Apple used their power to make strangle the entire idea of the web on mobile by putting a break on change. Why? Mobile web tech helps their competitors more than it helps them. If Apple's own platform / APIs had had the same rate of change as they effectively forced on the mobile web, then they would be a decade behind Android. This is exactly the same…

If you look carefully you'll see this tactic all over: throw mud in your opponents eyes to slow their rate of change. See: US banking (in the EU I can transfer cash, instantly, for free to a friend's bank account and have been able to do so for a decade), Fossil fuel vs Climate change, most commercial standard bodies. It's everywhere.

> US banking (in the EU I can transfer cash, instantly, for free to a friend's bank account and have been able to do so for a decade)

This one actually seems like a fault of the US government dragging its feet on making advancements on a nationwide protocol for transferring money and staying stuck on ACH. So much so that, that the biggest banks had to get together and create their own system 10 years ago:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zelle_(payment_service)

> Launched in April 2011, clearXchange was originally owned by Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo.

Supposedly, the US government is finally rolling out a proper system in 2023:

https://www.federalreserve.gov/paymentsystems/fednow_about.h...

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#74

Post by yobbo »

lewantmontreal wrote: post #11

Two words: Application permissions. Any application I install on the desktop can potentially steal my data and ruin my life. And no, big names like Spotify or Valve don’t offer complete protection either due to supply chain attacks.

Yes, but normies don't really understand or care.

The big difference is the "inviting" experience of installing apps on smartphones. Yes search the name and tap "install app".

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#75

Post by wiz21c »

bhawks wrote: post #59

When iPhone and Android hit the scene the 'rich' web experience was primarily flash, silverlight, and some java applets (taking their last breathe). Input APIs for touch, multitouch and gesture were a mess for many years in the browser. Media queries didn't become a w3c recommendation until 2012 so building a ux that looked pleasant really wasn't possible. The memory, cpu, GPU, storage and battery constraints were un…

> content addressibility

I'd say the app ecosystem promotes closed content whereas WWW promotes open content.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#77

Post by feanaro »

Native phone apps are more invasive and can therefore be used for more extensive tracking and spying, which is good for ad revenue.

Remember how all the largest spying products like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, Twitter, etc aggressively push you to install their phone apps even though they are (or were) perfectly usable through their mobile websites.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#78

Post by omegalulw »

hliyan wrote: post #35

Lot of potential theories here. Allow me to offer one of my own: it's our physical posture and ergonomics. When on the desktop, you're usually sitting down in front of a desk after deciding to set aside some time for the express purpose of doing something on a computer. A small wait for the UI to render is tolerable. But when you're on a mobile device, it's usually the the thing you're using to kill time while you're…

> A small wait for the UI to render is tolerable.

Absolutely not. In fact, I expect more responsiveness from my desktop.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#79

Post by forty »

feanaro wrote: post #77

Native phone apps are more invasive and can therefore be used for more extensive tracking and spying, which is good for ad revenue. Remember how all the largest spying products like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, Twitter, etc aggressively push you to install their phone apps even though they are (or were) perfectly usable through their mobile websites.

Also there is no app store on the web, no 30% fee. So no incentive for mobile platform owners to make it first class citizen.

Re: Why did the web take over desktop and not mobile?

#80

Post by amelius »

feanaro wrote: post #77

Native phone apps are more invasive and can therefore be used for more extensive tracking and spying, which is good for ad revenue. Remember how all the largest spying products like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, Twitter, etc aggressively push you to install their phone apps even though they are (or were) perfectly usable through their mobile websites.

> Native phone apps are more invasive and can therefore be used for more extensive tracking and spying, which is good for ad revenue.

It's probably because the specificiation for native apps is always cooked up by a single company, whereas the web specificiation is always under scrutiny of multiple organizations.

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