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I can't speak to mobile, I really don't know much about mobile development. But when it comes to the desktop, what's the motivation for a PWA over something li

I can't speak to mobile, I really don't know much about mobile development. But when it comes to the desktop, what's the motivation for a PWA over something like Electron? I appreciate the app size would be much smaller, but then you're back to fighting browser and platform compatibility issues (such as those browsers that have weak support for PWAs). Seems that inevitably you'll be doing "Yes, its a PWA, but it only works/only been tested on Chrome". Well, may as well go full Electron and lock that choice in, right? Or am I overblowing it?

chromakode 4y ago
Pros: - Low friction install process. Prompt user and you're done. - No extra distribution channel (same build as web, auto updates baked in) - Permissions sandboxed by browser. Cons: - Compat (though for some simple apps using mature APIs this is not a big issue) - Limited to browser features and performance. Can't integrate deeply with OS.
- BackBlast 4y ago
  Additional Pros: - PWAs have much lower download requirements, whatever your SPA page weight is pretty much the download size. 1-3MB is pretty common. - PWAs will use lower memory overhead as you don't need a new copy of the browser - it shares with the likely default system browser. - Launch time can be very snappy even on lower end systems if the base browser is already loaded and you manage offline assets well. - Don't need to build for Windows, Linux, MacOS. One build serves Web, Windows, MacOs, and Linux users. Additional cons: - No guarantee of local storage remaining unmolested by the browser. In practice, it's fine unless a user's disk is filling up then you can get purged. - Most obvious OS integration limitation is the inability to control the menus on MacOS. You get a generic set that comes with the PWA.
  - depressedpanda 4y ago
    > - Don't need to build for Windows, Linux, MacOS. One build serves Web, Windows, MacOs, and Linux users. Don't forget that they also get Android and iOS, unlike an Electron app.

chromakode 4y ago

Pros: - Low friction install process. Prompt user and you're done. - No extra distribution channel (same build as web, auto updates baked in) - Permissions sandboxed by browser. Cons: - Compat (though for some simple apps using mature APIs this is not a big issue) - Limited to browser features and performance. Can't integrate deeply with OS.

BackBlast 4y ago
Additional Pros: - PWAs have much lower download requirements, whatever your SPA page weight is pretty much the download size. 1-3MB is pretty common. - PWAs will use lower memory overhead as you don't need a new copy of the browser - it shares with the likely default system browser. - Launch time can be very snappy even on lower end systems if the base browser is already loaded and you manage offline assets well. - Don't need to build for Windows, Linux, MacOS. One build serves Web, Windows, MacOs, and Linux users. Additional cons: - No guarantee of local storage remaining unmolested by the browser. In practice, it's fine unless a user's disk is filling up then you can get purged. - Most obvious OS integration limitation is the inability to control the menus on MacOS. You get a generic set that comes with the PWA.
- depressedpanda 4y ago
  > - Don't need to build for Windows, Linux, MacOS. One build serves Web, Windows, MacOs, and Linux users. Don't forget that they also get Android and iOS, unlike an Electron app.