p-t (u/p-t) - Readit News

p-t commented on So you want to write an “app” (2025) arcanenibble.github.io/so... · Posted by u/jmusall

judah · 7 days ago

Increasingly, there just aren't enough incentives to write native apps.

This isn't a criticism of the article, but rather a tangential observation about why so many people turn to the web instead of using native toolkits to build apps, and why so many of native toolkits feel uninspired and lacking any real innovation.

If I choose to build an app using web tech, I get:

- Universal distribution

- No download and install process

- No "please wait while we update this"

- Users can easily share my app

- Users can link to individual pages within my app

- Users get autofill for forms and passwords and credit cards

- Users can block ads

- Users can scale and zoom my content

- Users can find text on any page in my app

- No "SmartScan couldn't verify if this app is safe" because it wasn't signed with a cert.

- A clearer security model: web apps prompt the user for access to e.g. microphone, camera, or secure disk locations. Native apps can kinda do whatever they want.

Why would I give up all those things to write a native app? A knee-jerk answer is often "performance", but honestly, most web apps load faster than their native counterparts these days.

Another common answer is app store distribution, but web apps can now be published to the major app stores without Electron or other frameworks. Google Play and Microsoft Store both support PWAs, and iOS App Store supports web apps via web view.

There are some scenarios where a native app is warranted. For example, hooking into some native component or OS API; e.g. HealthKit on iOS. But for many apps, the web is good enough.

p-t · 7 days ago

> most web apps load faster than their native counterparts these days

maybe i'm doing something wrong, but from what i've noticed, the browser is usually what takes up most of my computer's resources.

also, i assumed the reasoning for using a native app was for offline use, honestly.

p-t commented on 10% of Firefox crashes are caused by bitflips mas.to/@gabrielesvelto/11... · Posted by u/marvinborner

saati · 11 days ago

I haven't seen a single firefox or chrome crash in months now, you should really stress-test your hardware.

p-t · 11 days ago

firefox crashes... decently often for me, but it's usually pretty clear what the cause is [having a bunch of other programs open]. every time i can recall my computer bluescreening [in the last year~, since that's how long ive had it] it was because of firefox tho.

this may have something to do with the fact that my laptop is from 2017, however.

p-t commented on “Microslop” filtered in the official Microsoft Copilot Discord server windowslatest.com/2026/03... · Posted by u/robtherobber

oytis · 14 days ago

Like, why have a public discussion if we can have a private one? Public discussions are important, especially as AI is largely a political project

p-t · 14 days ago

i'd argue a discord is never really "public", since there's still a barrier to entering and it's easy to get banned

p-t commented on Apple patches decade-old iOS zero-day, possibly exploited by commercial spyware theregister.com/2026/02/1... · Posted by u/beardyw

p-t · a month ago

i wonder if this could be used to make a jailbreak possible :3

p-t commented on I started programming when I was 7. I'm 50 now and the thing I loved has changed jamesdrandall.com/posts/t... · Posted by u/jamesrandall

neilellis · a month ago

I suppose the question is "Do you feel Steve Jobs made the iPhone?"

Not saying right/wrong but it's a useful Rorschach Test - about what you feel defines 'making this'?

p-t · a month ago

it's more just a personal want to be able to see what I can do on my own tbh; i don't generally judge other people on that measure

although i do think Steve Jobs didn't make the iPhone /alone/, and that a lot of other people contributed to that. i'd like to be able to name who helps me and not say "gemini". again, it's more of a personal thing lol

p-t commented on I started programming when I was 7. I'm 50 now and the thing I loved has changed jamesdrandall.com/posts/t... · Posted by u/jamesrandall

bigstrat2003 · a month ago

> If you were a smart dev before AI, chances are you will remain a smart dev with AI.

I don't think that's what people are upset about, or at least it's not for me. For me it's that writing code is really enjoyable, and delegating it to AI is hell on earth.

p-t · a month ago

i agree. it seem like an expectation these days to use AI sometimes... for me i am happy not using it at all, i like to be able to say "I made this" :)

p-t commented on TikTok's 'addictive design' found to be illegal in Europe nytimes.com/2026/02/06/bu... · Posted by u/thm

llbbdd · a month ago

There may be a very fine line between reward-hacking for the user's benefit vs. building a facsimile of language learning on top of a nuclear-powered Gacha loop. I've looked at other learning apps (including I think Anki but I haven't tried it) trying to help people out of the Duolingo pit and they do all seem much more clinical in comparison. Not automatically a bad thing for an educational tool but it's also not hard to see why they don't get the same traction.

p-t · a month ago

yeah, the issue is that there really can't be one "do-it-all" tool. even duolingo doesn't really teach grammar iirc [which really means one can't become fluent tbh]. one kinda has to set up the parts by oneselves, but that's a bit difficult to get used to

p-t commented on Product and design are the new bottlenecks jampa.dev/p/the-rise-of-o... · Posted by u/jampa

cm2012 · a month ago

Each person eats two slices though

p-t · a month ago

how big are these pizzas, i almost always eat 4 [if i'm warming up a frozen one i'd have all of it tbh]

p-t commented on TikTok's 'addictive design' found to be illegal in Europe nytimes.com/2026/02/06/bu... · Posted by u/thm

llbbdd · a month ago

Idk how to feel about this specifically but I kind of hope they come for Duolingo next. They are up to some similar mind hacking shit to keep people from leaving. There's the downright abusive streak management tactics that have become a major part of their brand and PR, and the lesson plans seem designed to plateau to prevent you from actually getting proficient enough in a language to ever unsub. They reset your cleared lessons and require you to redo them if they add new vocab to them, as well as randomly clearing them in the name of making you practice them again. I don't know what the solution is but I've known multiple people now who've gotten frustrated and blamed themselves for not being able to advance their skills with a language, but Duolingo's business model, like Tinder's, is completely opposed with the goals of their users. If Duolingo R&D discovered a magical new method of making you fluent in a language overnight, they would not sell it to you. Tinder R&D might have discovered the actual honest-to-God formula for True Love years ago and burned it because they can make more if you swipe forever.

p-t · a month ago

duolingo is pretty bad overall, sadly most better alternatives [zB: anki flashcards] are a bit less shiny and more difficult to set-up for less tech-oriented people

p-t commented on TikTok's 'addictive design' found to be illegal in Europe nytimes.com/2026/02/06/bu... · Posted by u/thm

ajsnigrutin · a month ago

Might be a generational thing, but I never understood the "shorts" (in any format on any social network).

I can watch a 9 hour video on GTA games without problems (not in one sitting, but in parts), but 3 'shorts' in a row with not enough info and explanation to be interesting makes me close any of the 'shorts' apps (tiktok, youtube shorts, instagram....).

(eg, the 9 hour video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Faxpr_3EBDk )

p-t · a month ago

i can't really concentrate well on long video content outside of specific cases, so there's that. honestly though i feel like shorts aren't the solution, there should just be more text content [eg: tutorials] in addition to video things. [every time someone says something is "only communicateable through video/audio" i die a little bit inside...]