When I take off my software development glasses and look at the world as an average consumer, this is what I think about the word "app":
An "app" is a small handy application which I install on my mobile phone. I use these apps: Calendar, Contacts, WhatsApp, Twitter, Reddit, Maps, ...
When I put on my software development glasses, I think the following:
Most apps are useless. There are useful apps, but most apps could be a website. Useful apps are apps which provide offline capabilities. But apps which don't work while I am offline could be implemented via traditional web development.
I love ads for useless apps
I guess that today (January 2024), most people think about a useful handy application if they hear the term "app".
I predict that this will change.
Apps are everywhere today: my grocery store, my health insurance provider, my favorite radio station, ...
They all want me to install an app.
I don't want that!
That's why I love ads for useless apps.
I predict that the perception of the term "app" will change.
Please keep on advertising for useless apps. Then people will begin to dislike apps, and they will get back to the one and only universal platform the web.
Ads for useless apps get us web developers closer to our goal: Make the web attractive.
The web should be great for consumers and for producers.
Just wait some years and this useless hype about apps will disappear, and the web will gain more traction again.
And this will make way too complicated web development frameworks (React, Vue, Svelte) less attractive, and straightforward frameworks like htmx.org more attractive.
Let's wait and see.
Have fun!
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