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We already know HTML/CSS are not the best way to do layout. We already have many desktop based UI frameworks to create cross platform desktop apps. GTK, QT, et

We already know HTML/CSS are not the best way to do layout. We already have many desktop based UI frameworks to create cross platform desktop apps. GTK, QT, etc which are also superior to the single app, limited size focused Android/iOS UI frameworks. More importantly, unlike iOS/Android, they’re even cross platform. HTML/CSS/JS are successful because of the same reason electron exists. The success of the web means there’s a huge developer base that knows how to work with HTML/CSS/JS which was the original lingua franca of the web, and there are tons of libraries, frameworks, tools, components, etc available in the HTML/CSS/JS world that makes development easier and quicker.

whilenot-dev 3y ago
> HTML/CSS/JS are successful because of the same reason electron exists. The success of the web means there’s a huge developer base that knows how to work with HTML/CSS/JS The actual reason is a different one IMHO. The implementation of web standards enabled cross-platform engines that provide every UI customization one could possibly need for a SaaS product. This decision included many benefits for businesses and developers alike, such as: - User data stays in the walled garden - Users most probably already have a web-browser installed - Responsibility to keep the runtime (web-browser) up-to-date is on the user side - Automated updates (POV user) - No installation instructions I think it as much as a business decision as it was the decision from developers to bet on HTML/CSS/JS instead of GTK, QT, etc.