[methodot topic] what kind of low code platform is more suitable for developers?

In today's ,“ Low code ” Technology has been difficult to describe as a new form of technical services .

“ Low code ” The concept of , As early as 1982 year , Then by James Martin stay 《 Application development without programmers 》 In the book . And from 90 s , In different stages of software development abroad , Have studied and tried to launch the corresponding low code solutions . But the real turning point in time , To come 2015 Around the year , As the infrastructure evolves , Low code related technologies are beginning to dawn , And Microsoft 、 Google and other giants have officially entered the market , The low code track officially opened .

At the same time , Domestic low code manufacturers have also begun to try to layout ,2018 About years ago , Internet giant Ali 、 tencent 、 Baidu has entered the market one after another , Also indirectly laid the direction for the entire industry . According to iResearch 《2021 Low code Industry Research Report 》 As shown in , By 2020 year , China's low code market has 59 Financing from the event , There are still those with a financing scale of more than 100 million yuan 13 There are so many . In the same period, the market scale has also increased year by year 15.9 Billion （2020 year ）, According to the measured , The market size will be 2025 reach 131 Billion , future 5 The annual compound growth rate is 52.6%.

The screenshot is from iResearch consulting 《2021 Low code Industry Research Report 》

  As of the deadline ,36 Krypton enterprise service reviews the low code development section , Domestic manufacturers have been entered / The total number of products is 109 paragraph . There are signs that , Low code market , Has gradually moved to the midfield .

As a business service , Low code is definitely clear , Provide a complete visual development interface , Enable users to write applications in a non-traditional development mode , So as to realize low cost 、 Efficient application development . But for a real development model , The concept of low code is open , The products on the market no matter from the technical solution 、 In terms of usage mode or application scenario , A hundred flowers have already blossomed .

that , What kind of low code platform is more suitable for developers ？ We might as well start with the two most popular low code platform forms in the domestic market , Let's talk about the current low code platform .

Form driven - The new stage of enterprise informatization

It is generally believed , Form driven is used as BPM The continuation of the system , If you go back to the source , More like early use Excel For data management ： Multiple participants follow certain conventions , By editing on the computer 、 Deliver documents 、 Information or tasks , To achieve the specified business objectives .

Some from BPM Low code development platform transformed from system or spreadsheet products , Most of them continue this form driven model . At present, the low code platform mainly adopts this mode in the market , Common are ： Jiandaoyun 、 Mingdao cloud 、 Appropriate 、 Tritium cloud 、 Have to sail cloud and so on .

Defan cloud's form design interface

Form driven low code platforms have been around since their inception , There are clear customer groups and application scenarios . If the current low code platform is the most suitable for users who have never been engaged in software development to quickly complete the development of a small application , that , No form driven low code platform .

There are only two core editing interfaces of the form driven platform , Form design and process design , Through the design of the form, complete the modeling of its abstract data , And synchronize the creation of binding data / Editing interface , By process design , To define the process state of the data , And operational roles in different states , Field visibility / Editable permissions, etc .

In the prevailing view of the industry ,“ Form driven ” Have lower use threshold and technical threshold , But the application scenarios are more limited , It is usually only used to develop a simple data filling system , It is difficult to apply in the development of enterprise applications .

In an idealized intra enterprise use scenario , The platform will be used by multiple business units in the enterprise at the same time , Each department designs forms according to its own digital needs , At the same time, participate in the form filling of other departments 、 The process of spreading . So that every business related person in the enterprise can see all forms related to him on the platform , As one's own task item or concern . And this , It is also the practical demand of enterprise information digitalization .

To meet the above scenario , The design idea of the form driven low code platform has become clear .

1. In order to enable any employee of the enterprise to get started quickly , The platform needs to minimize the learning cost of actual users . In the process of user use , The abstract software design process needs to be eliminated as much as possible , Even at the expense of flexibility （ For example, the binding design of interface and dynamic data ）, Enable users to directly correspond with enterprise business , To achieve the design purpose .
2. Preferably a single platform + Patterns of multiple isomorphic micro applications . Only in this way can we effectively aggregate information , Improve the efficiency of enterprise information flow . A single form collection service （ Such as ： The questionnaire star 、 Tencent questionnaire, etc ） Although it can also solve the problem of information collection , But for information synchronization , And process control will be weak , This is an indispensable part of the enterprise's ability to improve the overall efficiency of information flow .

The limitations of form driven are also obvious ：

1. Limited by the design and use of strong binding between forms and data models , In actual use , It is often difficult to design with good expansibility 、 The data model of complex association . Lots of forms , On the one hand, a large amount of data redundancy will be formed （ The same business data is mapped behind different form designs ）, On the other hand, it is easy to form a data island （ Lack of relevance design in the form design process , It is impossible to reuse data in other businesses ）. meanwhile , Due to the direct correspondence between the form and the data model , It also makes the presentation of data 、 The operation interface can only be executed by the current form , It is difficult to design complex data retrieval and data interaction .
2. Form driven low code platform , Usually it can only deal with data collection and display , And cannot be more intelligent based on data 、 Automated derived logic design . To make up for the defect , Low code platforms tend to add some programmable interfaces , So that users can solve the above problems through code . But with the opening of coding function , The experience of platform users will also begin to split . The more real thing is , A large number of users who are not good at data modeling , There is no matching technical ability to write code .

Of course , Anyway , In the context of enterprise digitalization , The form driven low code platform can still solve most of the simple information flow needs in daily enterprise business . But for developers , Form driven low code platforms and developers' working scenarios are often mutually exclusive .

One side , Form driven target users are not the developers themselves , Even the platform itself , It is because the enterprise does not have the development ability , Or reduce the development cost .

On the other hand , Because in the form driven platform , Compared with traditional software development, application design pattern , A lot of simplification and even castration , This leads developers to use the form driven platform , There are often a large number of software design ideas that cannot be implemented in the platform .

In a word , Developer and form driven , Maybe there is no fate .

Model driven - The mode reengineering of traditional software development

Unlike form driven evolution from the early spreadsheet model , Model driven is abstracted and summarized from the traditional software development model .

Model driven platforms use visual modeling techniques to define data relationships 、 Process logic and building user interfaces , Enable developers and business users to quickly deliver applications , Without code . In the current market , Such as ：Mendix、OutSystems、 Movable case 、ClickPass、 Weida, etc , Both belong to the category of model driven .

Mendix Display the built-in model of the system

Relative to form driven , Model driven may be a lot closer to developers . If we say that form driven is to enable users who do not have the development ability to develop applications , So model driven , It provides developers with another set of development tools that are different in shape but similar in spirit .

Model driven low code platform , It is more like the business reengineering of the traditional software development mode , A large number of design patterns that originally existed only in the minds of developers , Actually build the user interface for design operation . meanwhile , The platform also defines the design paradigm of each link in the development process , So that each design module can be better integrated .

To put it another way , Model driven does not lower the requirements for developers' software design knowledge , It's a change in programming , The work that previously required developers to write code , It can be defined and configured through the visual interface , Thus, the process of application development is accelerated , Improve the overall efficiency .

Take the binding mode of data model and user interface as an example ：

In form driven design , Users need to design the form first , When the form is confirmed , The corresponding data model will also be automatically inferred and confirmed . Since then , The form is fully bound to the data model , The modification of the form will also directly affect the data model . The data entity only supports form modification .

But in Model Driven Design , Data modeling and user interface design are completely separated . Users can first model through the data model design interface , Then use the user interface designer to design the interface , Finally, through the data binding mechanism of the platform , Bind the data model for the specified interface , To achieve the final data presentation .

And this model driven binding , And traditional software development MVC Design patterns , In fact, they have kept consistent ： Design separately Model （Model） layer , And view （View） layer , And through the control layer （ Controller） Layer to control the binding relationship between the model layer and the view layer . It's just , On model driven low code platforms , The model layer 、 View layer 、 The control layer can be designed directly by using the visual interface , Without having to write code .

however , If in the eyes of professional developers , There may be some suspicion of reversing .

Whether it's form driven , Model driven , The application design patterns that we hope to build are to directly generate binding relationship between the model layer and the view layer . Advantages of model driven over form driven , It also supports the dynamic assembly of models , Make the binding relationship between model layer and view layer more flexible .

But in real enterprise application development , Between the model layer and the view layer , In fact, there is a business layer . In addition to controlling the relationship between the view and the model , The biggest role of the business layer , It is to define the business behavior separately . It can be the business behavior generated by the end user's direct interaction with the application , It can also be the system's initiative according to the data model 、 Business behavior automatically triggered by business characteristics .

meanwhile , The emergence of the business layer , This enables the business behavior to control the processing logic of different data independently , For example, multiple judgments 、 Business management 、 Compatible with fault tolerance, etc . This is also the focus of software engineering ” High cohesion 、 Low coupling “ The direct practice of this design goal .

Last , The business layer defines business behaviors and data operations , It can greatly improve the reusability of module logic . For example, in common complex business , It is often necessary to operate on multiple data models at the same time , If you can't design the business layer alone , Only in different view positions , Repeat the design data model operation process many times , In the process of repeated design , Some inconsistencies , It is easy to lead to more complex business errors .

So back to the model driven context , Admittedly, the dynamic binding mode between data model and view , It is very similar to the traditional software development mode , Even in small applications , Developers have been able to intuitively feel the efficiency improvement . But for developers , This is still not the ultimate tool .

Lack of business layer , It's not just the lack of a definition of business behavior . Make the application more intelligent 、 Automatic computing power , There will be no place to put it . For example, hash digest algorithm for data 、 Batch processing algorithms for large amounts of data 、 Encoding and decoding ability of unconventional data 、 Conditional timing tasks and even user recommended algorithms 、 User profile generation 、 Multi element intelligent push, etc , It is common in traditional software development , But in low code platforms , But there's nowhere to do it , We need to find another way .

Of course , With the development of the market , It is believed that the major low code manufacturers will continue to gradually expand their own platform capabilities , So that more and more application capabilities can be used by developers in their own platforms . But at least today , Even model driven , Still can not fully meet the needs of developers .

What is the third possibility ？

Although at home , Low code platforms mainly point to two types of low code platforms: form driven and model driven , But overseas , Talk about low code , It's a different picture .

Different from the general recognition of low code in China , The more respected model overseas is the instrumentalization of low code capability , And try to be domain specific , Not omnipotent . Although there are many in foreign countries OutSystems、Mendix Such a large low code platform , But in recent years, it has been favored by developers , But it is low code in some specific fields / No code service .

On the information website nocode.tech Low code tools included in , According to the capability of the tool , It is divided into form design 、 Application design 、 Market tools 、 Customer support tools 、 Analysis tools 、 Automation tools 、 Database tools, etc 37 Types , So far , Included low code / The codeless tool service exceeds 200 paragraph .

nocode.tech Low code tool categories included in

  On top of the tool , Foreign countries have also gradually created communities around low code tools for application development 、 Teaching and even industry . By using a variety of low code tools , And borrow from API Put it together , Make it a complete business application , It is also a popular trend of low code development . What's interesting is that , In order to improve API Assembly efficiency , There are also a large number of products for assembly in the market API Low code tools for , The overall development efficiency can be further improved .

In the domestic market , Similar service forms have gradually emerged . Such as low code spreadsheet service Vig table , Position yourself as facing API Multidimensional tables for , And the software integration service set Jianyun , Also began to try to provide domestic online services API Integration capabilities .

Compared to using a separate low code platform , Choose to integrate multiple low code tools , It will greatly expand the capability radius of the application . In a single low code platform , Its capability radius and application design interface are highly dependent on the platform itself . But choose a solution where multiple low code tools are integrated with each other , Can greatly avoid this problem .

meanwhile , Use API Docking mode , It also provides a reliable guarantee for the depth of business . In traditional development ,API Appearance , Make the provider and user of capabilities truly separate . We can call directly in business applications API Ability to achieve , You can also write your own code to access API The ability of , And then provide more appropriate services for business applications API. Through such business encapsulation , It can effectively guarantee the level and isolation of the business .

More than that , With the popularity of microservice Architecture ,API It has gradually become a first-class citizen in the self-development and application of enterprises . adopt API To encapsulate capabilities , Reflect the business , It is integrated by other businesses , It has always been one of the best practices in traditional development .

So we can't help but make this assumption , When developers really move into low code areas , More reasonable combination mode , It is still an independent field of competence ,API Go ahead , An architectural form that is more integrated than closed .

Methodot,API The leading new generation development platform

In order to make the low code ability really improve the daily development efficiency of front-line developers , Xingyun qucode has carefully studied a large number of existing low code platforms on the market , And industry trends at home and abroad .

In the developer world , Be able to quickly complement their own ability weakness , But they can give full play to their professional fields that they are really good at , It has always been the most desired R & D model for developers . Most of the low code platforms on the market today , Although it can achieve the ability to quickly complete specific tasks , But the emergence of the platform itself , But also for the ability that developers are good at , Forming a limitation .

Can there be a platform , It allows developers to enjoy low code tool efficiency while , It can also improve the upper limit of application capability through code writing and capability integration ？ If any , Then it should not be a low code platform , It is a development platform rich in low code tools .

Methodot (https://methdoot.com) It is such a one-stop online development platform , The platform has built-in several low code development tools , At the same time, it also has complete programming and development ability .

stay Methodot in , Developers can freely choose to use low code or code to complete the development of specific work , It can be a front-end interface 、 It can be data modeling 、 It can also be API Integrate . meanwhile , The platform also has a large number of open source low code tool suites , Let developers integrate as needed .

meanwhile ,Methodot It also provides a visual editor for the microservice architecture , Let the service capability be the first level object in the application design engineering , Whether it's traditional development , Or low code development , It is a self-developed application , Third party service docking , Can be integrated quickly , There is no need to worry about the expansibility of the business system .

  More Than This ,Methodot It also deeply integrates cloud native technology capabilities , Through the complete reengineering of software development mode , Set R & D tools 、 Delivery engine 、 Three dimensional integration of operating environment , It has created a new generation of R & D space for developers . let me put it another way , stay Methodot in , You can code at the same time 、 compile 、 structure , And directly deploy to provide services , No need to prepare coding 、 Debug environment , There is no need to purchase server resources separately .

Cloud native , Low code , Write less , It's fast .

This is it. Methodot, Your one-stop cloud native application online development platform .