What a non techie should know about low code/no code platforms — Part I

Creating ready to go apps with minimal/no code! Sounds pretty cool, right?

What are low code/no code platforms?

The typical software engineering process consists of trained developers working together using a bunch of tools (including IDEs, git repositories, libraries, dev/testing/deployment environments etc.); i.e. the world of software development does present a significant learning curve for one to enter and thrive in.

However, as software is required to run almost anything in business or personal life, it would be great if there was a way to empower non-technical users to test out their ideas, and perhaps even build and deploy apps that can be used by others.

And that’s where low code/no code platforms have been gaining traction.

In simple terms, low code/no code platforms abstract complexity from lines of code and convert them into elements in a GUI that non-technical users and citizen developers (users with little or no development experience) can work with, enabling them to connect “building blocks” together and construct a functional workflow.

These could range from tools that are as simple as drag and drop, where users create applications as if they were drafting a flowchart; or could extend to tools that still retain the need to code in some elements to make the flow work.

These platforms are generally built on extended cloud-based platform-as-a-service environments; and typically employ visual programming interfaces to solve business problems faster and more completely than could be accomplished with traditional software development.

What is the difference between low code and no code platforms?

As mentioned before, these platforms generally have features that allow for feature experiments, prototyping, testing and deployment.

However, there are subtle variations in terms of how these features are presented to the end user.

• Low code platforms enable users to rapidly deploy commodity tasks with little code, thereby creating apps that form part of a larger process.

These typically target users with some development experience, or developers that need to quickly build apps; employing visual development environments and automated linkages to back-end systems, databases, web services, or APIs.

• No code platforms enable non-technical users who understand the business case, requirements and associated rules, to create tactical apps and workflows.

No-code solutions, hence take the code level abstraction a step further, introducing visual drag-and-drop interfaces that involve no coding at all.

Benefits of these platforms

Frees up productivity of developers

• Commodity and repeatable tasks can be pushed to these platforms, thereby freeing up trained developers, who can be better utilized on projects that require software engineering expertise to complete

Rapid prototyping

• Experimentation of solutions is key; and these platforms enable business users to test and validate ideas much faster than a traditional engineering process would allow them to; hence it enables them to get to a ROI faster

Expanded capabilities

• Currently the top areas for low-code use are business process or workflow applications, web and mobile front ends, and customer-facing applications, according to Forrester.
• But low-code has quickly become a standard practice for fast application development, as illustrated by adapting to COVID-19 pandemic-related scenarios such as employee contract tracing apps. Experts predict that eventually low-code will expand into broader areas such as reengineering technology stacks and ecosystems.

Recent developments

• Low code/no code platforms have seen significant growth in the recent past; since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, the number of executives naming low- and no-code development platforms as their most important automation investment has nearly tripled, from 10% to 26%, according to a KPMG study.
• In addition, KPMG finds, 100% of enterprises who have implemented a low- and no-code development platform have seen ROI through these initiatives.

Within the next two years, Gartner predicts, more than half of medium to large enterprises will have adopted low-code application platforms. A survey of 324 organizations by Unisphere Research/Information Today, Inc., found at least 76% already had at least some portion of applications developed outside of traditional IT departments or service providers.

• They turned around their required applications in a matter of weeks, and only 17% report turnaround times exceeding three months.

Closing thoughts

These platforms present great opportunities to democratize technology and reduce the cost and time it takes to build and test out new ideas. A large number of entrepreneurs have been using these platforms as a first step in building their products, and why not, given the benefits?

Clearly, this could be a silent revolution in the making.

• For anyone who’d like to get their hands dirty with one of these tools, check out the link below:

Create a sample app using — https://appsgeyser.com/create/start/individual/