Rapid & Modern Software Development

Low Code/No-Code is the biggest change since cloud-based software. This type of app development work is sometimes called point-and-click development or simply click development.

Low Code/No-Code

Low-code and no-code platforms are bringing about the biggest change in the IT world since Google Docs.?Cloud-based software ?forced the rest of the IT world to sit up and listen. Traditional providers were forced to change overnight.

And now?the world of DevOps ?is being forced to listen to the new kids on the block—low-code and no-code platforms, which have the potential to make software development so easy that almost anyone can do it.

Do you need to build applications for immediate use? Maybe it’s time to move away from professional developers and pick up a new low-/no-code platform.

Analysts at Gartner estimate that the low-code market grew 23% in 2020 to reach $11.3 billion, and will grow to $13.8 billion in 2021 and almost $30 billion by 2025. Gartner also forecasts that low-code application development will account for 65% of all application development activity by 2024, mostly for small and medium-sized projects. Meanwhile, Forrester projects about half of firms today use a low-code platform, but this number could rise to 75% by the end of 2021.

Dozens of mainstream and niche software vendors offer low- or no-code platforms, many of which run in the cloud. Gartner ranks nearly 20 in its "2020 Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Low-Code Application Platforms."

Low-code and no-code modular approaches let professional developers quickly build applications by relieving them of the need to write code line by line. They also enable business analysts, office administrators, small-business owners and others who are not software developers to build and test applications. These people can create applications with little to no knowledge of traditional programming languages, machine code or the development work behind the platform's configurable components.

An incomplete list of some of the most common low-code/no-code platform vendors and tools includes:

Claris FileMaker ,Google AppSheet,Looker 7,MendixMicrosoft PowerApps,Salesforce Lightning,Wix Editor X,Zoho Creator,AirtableAppGyver,AppSheet,AWSHoneycode,Quickbase,Shopify,Zapier,Zudy Vinyl, Appian

How do low-code and no-code work?

In conventional software development, programmers write lines of code to create the functions and features desired in a computer program or application. This process requires programmers to have in-depth knowledge of computer languages, as well as development environments, deployment processes and testing protocols.

Low-code and no-code platforms encapsulate all that work behind the scenes. Users visually select and connect reusable components that represent particular steps or capabilities (which contain the actual code), and link them together to create the desired computerized workflow.

Users can create applications as if they were drafting a flowchart rather than writing line-by-line codes for each desired function and capability. These platforms also generally have features that allow for experimenting, prototyping, testing and deployment.

Low-code tools simplify and streamline several stages in the software development life cycle, such as debugging, testing, and deployment. They give users access to information about the apps created and their development and give them the ability to revert to previous versions if needed for better application life cycle management.

Low-code vs. no-code development platforms: What are the differences?

Evolution of low-code/no-code tools

Low-code/no-code platforms stem from earlier rapid application development (RAD) tools such as Excel, Lotus Notes and Microsoft Access that likewise put some development-like capabilities into the hands of business users (i.e., non-IT professionals).

However, those tools required users to thoroughly understand the business apps and their development environments in order to build capabilities. In contrast, with low-code and no-code options' drag-and-drop features, users need either minimal or no knowledge of the tools or development in general.

Furthermore, development with RAD tools generally produced capabilities used by the individual who created the functionality, or by a limited number of users associated with the creator (usually a work group or business unit). Apps produced with low-code or no-code platforms, on the other hand, are robust enough to be used across departments and throughout the entire enterprise, and even by external users such as customers and business partners.

Benefits of low-code and no-code platforms

First and foremost, low-code and no-code platforms speed the development and delivery of applications -- a critical element in the digital age when organisations must race to meet worker and customer demands, or be disrupted by others who do so.

These platforms also put more problem-solving capabilities into the hands of non-IT professionals, so that everyday workers can more quickly and easily create business apps that help them do their jobs.

These platforms also free professional developers from mundane programming activities. Development teams can use these platforms to quickly create apps for commodity functions and then tweak them to deliver even more value, or spend more time developing custom apps or addressing other initiatives that provide differentiating value to their organisations.

UNIQUE QUALITIES OF A LOW-CODE MOBILE APP

Citizen developers can deliver apps with mobile-specific features such as interfaces designed for smaller screens, offline caching and integration with enterprise mobility management systems.

OUT-of-THE-BOX FUNCTIONALITY

Leading low-code systems provide OOTB (out-of-the-box) functionality, which eliminates the need to build core modules for apps from scratch. For example, some low-code platforms include modules for data management or modules for customer facing apps, such as service management or sales processes management.

REUSABILITY

One major aspect of low-code development’s OOTB functionality is the usage of pre-configured modules and functionality for apps. These modules have common core functions needed for several apps, and they can be reused to develop different solutions more quickly. It’s essential that a low-code platform allows users to reuse prebuilt or newly-developed modules, plug-ins, and entire applications to develop necessary apps faster.

Challenges of low-code and no-code platforms

Although many organisations embrace these platforms to rapidly develop new business apps, they also contend with the problems and challenges generated by these platforms.

Because these tools are low-cost and easy to use, organisational leaders can, and often do, lose track of what their employees are building. This could mean there's no visibility or oversight to the data being generated, used or even inappropriately exposed in apps. It also could contribute to more shadow IT.

Another potential challenge is how to manage, maintain and scale these apps, as well as the potentially escalated infrastructure and storage costs associated with the proliferation of development activity enabled by these platforms.

Additionally, organisations may find that some tasks for which citizen developers or professional development teams have used these tools weren't well-suited to low-code and no-code methods or platforms, and this could represent a significant waste of resources.

The future of low-code/no-code application development

Industry experts predict the future of low-code will see continued enterprise adoption, especially for fast development and specific business needs, although low-code won't entirely replace traditional application development.

Low-code and no-code use is likely to increase among LOB workers, while more professional developers will adopt it as well, to help them with more mundane programming tasks.

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 re engineering technology stacks and ecosystems.

However, enterprises will continue to practice traditional development for applications that require extensive application functionality, data governance and deployment to specific architectures or environments.