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Ask HN: At what point does a 'website' become an 'application'?
I'm struggling a little with this rather mundane question of terminology: even the simplest of my personal 'websites' are built in Rails. They interact with a database, they are stateful, they are tested. Are they just a 'website', or are they an application?
I ask this from the perspective of discussing the site/app with other people, which is not really something I had done much of before.
What are your thoughts? What terminology should I use to minimize confusion during discussions?
- Alleyfield 16y agoimho that's just semantics. Make the terms clear at the start of the discussion - argument why you're using a term application instead of a website. Wouldn't that clear it up?
- aarongough 16y agoProbably, I'm just curious as the way you speak can radically alter the impression people get of you, and your project. In my mind referring to something as a 'site', rather than an 'application' or 'web-application' makes you seem less serious. Just a thought...
- Alleyfield 16y agoDo you consider facebook as a site which has applications or is it an application? If someone were to speak about the functionalities of the site called facebook - then would using the term "site" make facebook sound less serious?
- aarongough 16y agoGood point! Thanks for your thoughts, it's a small thing but it helps to know what other people are thinking.