What is our tech stack? Why isn't it a mobile app but a web app optimized for mobiles? How many people are working on the app? You will find out all of this in this article.
Anežka and I have been working on the app in our free time and funding it with our own resources. For these reasons, development must be extremely efficient.
Techstack and Team
Therefore, the application is built on technologies in which I am an expert - that is Python, Django, HTMX, and a bit of VanillaJS. The Mimatik studio, which also handles the frontend of the application - Bootstrap, Sass, assists us with design and UX. We have known the guys from Mimatik for years and have completed dozens of projects together in the past, so we are very well-coordinated and efficient. In total, four of us are working on the application - Anežka and I for ClimbLife, and designer Mike and UX/Frontend developer Martin for Mimatik studio.
Major challenge
ClimbLife Rating is thus a mobile-first web application. It is not even a so-called SPA (Single Page Application), but a traditional server-side-rendered solution. However, the feedback so far suggests that this is not a problem. We receive positive feedback on UX. The biggest obstacle we currently face is "How to install the app on your phone." Users are accustomed to looking for the app in the Apple Store or Google Play and, most importantly, having it on their home screen. We are currently addressing this obstacle with a combination of a poster in the climbing gym, which explains how to access the application, and then a banner directly in the application, which explains how to add the app to the home screen. Once this is achieved, most users no longer see a difference between the web and mobile applications.
Mobile vs web app comparison
If I were to generalize the advantages and disadvantages of web vs. mobile applications, I would think in the following way:
Mobile Application Pros:
- The possibility of a top-notch user interface
- Availability in app stores
- Can utilize all the technologies that mobile devices offer (NFC, push notifications, Bluetooth, ...)
Mobile Application Cons:
- Costly development
- The need to maintain/program 2 versions (Android, iOS), or even 3 if we also count the web
- Demanding maintenance (the need to update the application according to Google's and Apple's requirements)
- The necessity to adhere to Google's/Apple's rules (for example, Apple prohibits using a payment system other than their own, from which they take a 30% commission)
- Each application update must be approved by Google/Apple.
Web Application Pros:
- Cheaper and faster development
- Cheaper maintenance and simpler processes around releasing new versions
- The ability to immediately release new functionality
- Independence from Apple's/Google's rules
- The application works for all platforms at once (no need to maintain several versions)
Web Application Cons:
- The application is not in the store (theoretically, there are ways to get it into the store)
- Cannot utilize all the technologies that mobile devices offer
- Slightly worse user interface
In what web and mobile applications do not differ (even though you might expect they do):
- Both types of applications can support offline mode
- Some functionality like GPS or camera can be used in web applications as well
After considering these advantages and disadvantages, where the main decision criteria for us were speed, flexibility, and cost, the web application clearly wins for us, even though it has its challenges.
If you like our app and are intrigued by how we do it and would like to help us or just share your experiences with a similar dilemma, don't hesitate to write to us. :-)
Michal from ClimbLife