It was some time since I first started to experiment with nocode tools.
No code is great
There is no doubt that using those tools is quite faster than coding stuff with React and Bootstrap, as I usually do.
It is also true that the result looks cleaner than what I usually design.
I really enjoyed using glide apps. I suspect it is because they are using Firebase under the hood, which makes me feel sort of like home.
No code is not great
However, every time I tried to build something, I reached a point where I was struggling to add just the thing I wanted to do. I always got frustrated because I knew it would be pretty straightforward if I had access to code.
I would then painfully have to rewrite everything in well React with Bootstrap to add that little thing.
no code = somebody else’s code
People of the Internet
Page builders are great
There is a subset of digital stuff I build that really benefits from no code. I am talking about simple websites, so landing pages, marketing sites and so on. You can choose from so many cool builders, such as WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace, to name a few.
The main benefit of using the page builders is that anyone who can use a text editor can change their content (including my dad for his ski renting hobby business).
Page builders are awesome
Last month, I took part in a Wix hackathon. I built a Blocks app using their low code setup. I have to say I was impressed with what they have been building with their low-code “extension” to the page builder.
It is still early days and things don’t always work as they should or documentation is incorrect, and there are some crucial tooling missing.
I think the main reason I like their approach is that they build the core coding experience around JavaScript. They have their own flavour – Velo, but it is pretty much just JavaScript with some parts removed and a few added.
So it is quite easy to write, like a button handler that runs arbitrary javascript code. It can also call external API calls as it is just a JS. You can use most of the npm packages, too.
They also made it possible to create backend functions that share code with the frontend stuff, which is pretty rad. The backend functions don’t work that well yet, but the aspiration is cool.
And finally, you can have a DB with a few clicks too and hooks on document changes and much more.
Summary
I am having a hard time working with no code tools. I always hit some bit that is too hard to do within the platform, and then I need to rewrite everything.I might find a perfect balance in Wix, though.
I still would not use it for everything, but possibly on projects with a marketing cofounder it might work well to let them develop the UI at the same time.