Is a new cross-platform development era coming?

Having a single codebase for the main mobile platforms applications is a Holy Grail for many developers. There are some different approaches like using some existing programming languages (not related to mobile dev) and “compile” to native, or creating a synthetic language, or using JavaScript and wrap by the native code (or run in VM). The results are often slow, cumbersome and quite far from having real “native” feeling. What if we want to add more platforms like native desktop apps and web-based ones? The listed methods will not help us there at all.

What could be the real unifying factor for the app platforms we have now, both mobile, desktop and web-based? Right! We have browsers everywhere, that means we can run JavaScript everywhere and the only questions are how to “unbind” it from online-only usage pattern, how to give access to main hardware APIs without any plugins, and how to let the apps out from the browser UI.

Progressive web apps idea is gaining momentum among web developers, but, for now, take a look at it from the mobile developer’s point of view. Is this a real new cross-platform silver bullet?

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Maxim Salnikov is an Oslo-based Web UI Engineer, a Google Developer Expert in Web Technologies and Angular. He has been developing complex web applications since the end of the last century and has extensive experience with all aspects of web front-end: UX/UI prototyping, HTML/CSS/JS, main frameworks, and progressive web apps.

Maxim is a founder of and active contributor to two conferences: Mobile Era and ngVikings – Nordics’ main conferences for mobile and Angular developers respectively. Also, he leads Norway’s largest meetups dedicated to web frontend and mobile: Framsia, Angular Oslo, and Mobile Meetup Oslo.

Maxim is passionate about sharing his web frontend experience and knowledge with the community. He travels extensively for speaking and training at developer’s events, conferences, and meetups around the world.

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