DEV Community: Albert Sabaté

Brisa public release: Why do we want to use Brisa?

Albert Sabaté — Wed, 09 Oct 2024 07:47:24 +0000

Brisa is a modern web framework that simplifies the complexity of SSR with a focus on web-components. It clearly defines server and client data flows using the power of signals. With minimal overhead and a straightforward structure, Brisa has a minimal learning curve, high efficiency, and a clear approach to data management.

It has been one year since Aral Roca first shared with us his vision of building a new web framework — what would eventually become Brisa. Back then, it didn’t even have a name yet. But Aral had a clear idea of what he wanted: to learn by creating, and to gain a deeper understanding of how signals work using web components and server-side rendering (SSR).

At Zenet Technology, we started playing around with Brisa from version 0.0.30 — more than 200 versions ago! Since then, we’ve provided feedback to the Brisa team and even contributed a few small pieces ourselves.

Why would a developer or a company want to start using Brisa?

Clearly Defined Components: Brisa separates server and web components without needing to specify use server or use client, simplifying things and removing unnecessary overhead.
Web Standards Compliance: Brisa follows web standards as closely as possible, which means developers don’t have to learn new, proprietary concepts.
Effortless Data Flow: There’s no confusion about what data is server-side (private) or client-side, and Brisa provides a seamless way to share it across components.
Trust in the Authors: It’s driven by a genuine desire to make the web a better place, and that’s something you can get behind.
Innovation and Curiosity: Brisa combines cutting-edge concepts like Web Components, SSR, and signals in an exciting way.
Native App Development: With Tauri v2 integration, you can create native apps using Brisa with just a single command.
Future-Proof: Web Components are a key part of the web’s future, and Brisa is built on this foundation.
Easy to Learn: Brisa’s learning curve is short, making it accessible even to developers who are new to the web component ecosystem.

Why would a developer or a company want to hold back from using Brisa?

Developer Experience Still Evolving: Brisa’s DX is still a work in progress, and while it’s improving, it’s not quite on par with more established frameworks.
Small, Growing Community: The community is still small and support currently relies on a core group of contributors, which might make it slower to find answers when you’re stuck.

Conclusion

Even though Brisa is currently at version 0.1 (still a very early stage) we feel confident in saying it’s ready for small to mid-sized projects today. We believe Brisa has the potential to handle larger applications in the near future, thanks to the hard work and big ambitions of the Brisa team.

At Zenet Technology, we’ve successfully built two small projects and one mid-sized project using Brisa. It’s been a really busy year, but an exciting one!

Zenet Technology Onboards Brisa: A New Era of Web Development

Albert Sabaté — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 12:03:09 +0000

Zenet Technology's website has received an important update. You might not have noticed the change, but over the past few months, we have been collaborating with @aralroca to support his new framework called “Brisa,” and we have implemented it on our website. This new framework will be publicly available in September 2024, with the exact date to be defined, in its version 0.1. It will use BunJS, and we at Zenet Technology will be actively supporting it.

We have had the pleasure of being the first to work with Brisa framework, and we are committed to mastering every aspect of it to support new businesses in onboarding this amazing technology yet to be uncovered.

Brisa was inspired by BunJS, NextJS, React, Preact, SolidJS, VueJS, Qwik, Lit, HTMLx, and Tauri, incorporating all the incredible innovations these technologies have developed over the years. It features:

⚛️ Everything you need: JSX, TS, server/web components, server actions, optimistic updates, SSR, streaming, suspense, signals, websockets, middleware, layouts, and so on...
🚀 Speed: Brisa is designed to start, build, test, deploy and run fast.
🌍 i18n support: text translation and routing carrying only the translations you consume.
📦 Tiny: 0B by default, 2kB when you use server actions (RPC size), and 3kb when you need web components.
📲 Change the output: You can change your web from server to static, to desktop, android or ios app with just one configuration command.

Thanks to these features, Brisa is a lightning-fast framework that provides everything you need to run your application.

It comes with a unified developer experience and an opinioneted project structure which allows the framework to be smart enough to build everything you want and make it to work with just a few commands.

The first version will only work with BunJS for SSR or for static pages will run everywhere. We will be providing a very complete documentation and examples for you to start using it as easy as it could, even with no support to NodeJS.

No panic yet we only support BunJS because it is in the roadmap to support other platforms on the way to the version 1. Version 1 will be runtime agnostic, deploy it everywhere. It will be a very experimental framework for a while, but we are here to support.

Stay tunned for more updates, meanwhile you can follow @aralroca, who is actively posting fragments of code and more development status.

Or have a look by yourself at Brisa by @aralroca.

References

Breaking Down the Factors that Affect Development Costs

Albert Sabaté — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 11:39:39 +0000

Table of Contents
How much does it cost to develop an app?
The impact of project management on development costs
The importance of ongoing maintenance and support in development cost management
The importance of outsourcing on development costs
Conclusion

How much does it cost to develop an app?

Budgeting is everything! But without knowing what you want, this question is as vague as asking how much your dinner will cost. The answer depends on whether you want to eat plain rice or beluga caviar with many elaborations. The ingredients are meaningful, but the context is also crucial.

How can we even start the project without knowing the cost estimate? Let's move into some examples with numbers for a better picture.

An MVP (Minimum Viable Product) for a dating app like Tinder could easily cost more than $100,000, assuming six months of work, including project management, planning, design, development, and quality assurance. This MVP could be released within seven months.

We know that Tinder has an app for Android and iOS that uses different technologies and source codes, together with the landing page, which will also be different. Its functionality includes registration, login, authentication mechanism, user profile, photo swiping, real-time messaging, and push notifications. Tinder did not have payments on the MVP version.

A summary of the expensive features of a project could be related to integrations like payments, user authentication, booking flow, and real-time processes.

Finally, management will want an admin panel with metrics and user administration. Of course, the tech team will need tooling for managing a live app and possibly working on potential incidents - everything could be better in this world, and development is not a one-off effort!

Note that this MVP is only for going live and testing the app, I assure you it will have bugs (errors in the development world). Also, nowadays, we can outsource many tools. We have based the project on a simplified scenario and only consider the technology side, not marketing, human resources, etc. We have only seen the tip of the iceberg — it’s time to dive deeper into more detail.

The impact of project management on development costs

The complexity of a project can have a significant impact on development costs. More complex projects require more time and resources, thus increasing costs.

Triple constraint

The triple constraint in project management is the relationship between three essential factors: scope, time, and resources. Think of them like three legs of a stool - if you change one, it affects the stability of the whole thing. For example, if you want to implement more features into the project (scope), it will either take longer (time) or result in increased cost (resources).

Project managers use the triple constraint to balance these factors and ensure they meet the project's goals. Based on those factors, they must make decisions and trade-offs to ensure the project is completed successfully, on time, and within budget.

How many features would you like to have?
How much customization are you looking to have?

Having precise project requirements is essential for managing development costs. Development teams may spend more time and resources trying to understand what is needed otherwise, which can drive up costs. Precise requirements also help ensure the final product meets the client's needs, reducing the risk of costly rework.

Remember what is in vs. out
Keep in mind the triple constraint and focus on quality
You will continually be revisiting the scope of the project with everyone involved
Have a written scope that all the stakeholders understand
Focus on what you will be delivering and the value created
A broader scope will require more time and/or resources to keep the same quality

Cost of a change vs. ability to make a change over time

It is far better to take the time up-front to verify the scope and direction with your project stakeholders. Requesting a last-minute change can be costly or sometimes even impossible.

Balancing the triple constraint to adapt your budget could optimize your product launching process.

ALWAYS ensure the final product meets the quality standards to reduce the risk of expensive support and maintenance issues once the product goes live.

Reducing time and/or resources without revising the scope will compromise quality.

The importance of ongoing maintenance and support in development cost management

An app or website is not done when you release it to live, and we can even say that going live is only the beginning of the journey. Without regular updates and bug fixings, apps and websites will become outdated, leading to security vulnerabilities and decreased user engagement. By investing in ongoing maintenance and support, you can ensure that your software remains up-to-date and is functioning correctly, which can ultimately save money by reducing the need for significant updates or overhauls further down the line.

Additionally, providing reliable support to users can help avoid complaints, improve customer satisfaction, increase loyalty, and create more stable revenue over time.

The importance of outsourcing on development costs

Having your development team is fantastic, but it comes with costs to manage. Outsourcing software development comes in handy on many occasions. It can help optimize costs and reduce risks in several ways.

Leveraging on some existing functionalities, such as logging, monitoring, and analytics, instead of building them from scratch will save on time and cost without sacrificing quality. Access to talent on demand, specialized expertise, and allocation according to budget and timeline can also help develop high-quality software more efficiently and quickly.

Outsourcing helps businesses scale development resources up or down as needed without incurring overhead costs.

Remember that outsourcing is not only about talent. It’s also tools and software. Reinventing the wheel is expensive.

Conclusion

Congratulations, you've made it to the end of our journey through the complex and often confusing world of software development costs! While it may not be as exciting as a roller coaster ride, it's essential to understand the key factors that can impact your project's success and, of course, your wallet.

As we've seen, the complexity of a project, timeline requirements, team size and composition, testing, and compliance requirements can all impact development costs. But fear not, my tech-savvy friends! By understanding these factors and taking appropriate steps like outsourcing and investing in ongoing maintenance and support, you can better manage your development costs and set your project up for success.

So the next time someone asks, "How much does it cost to develop an app?" You can confidently respond: "It depends on many factors, but I can explain what to consider." And with your newfound knowledge, you may have enough left in the budget to treat yourself to some beluga caviar.

Bon appétit!

Please do not hesitate to book a consulting session with us here. We would love to hear your business idea and help you realize it!

DEV Community: Albert Sabaté

Brisa public release: Why do we want to use Brisa?

Why would a developer or a company want to start using Brisa?

Why would a developer or a company want to hold back from using Brisa?

Conclusion

Zenet Technology Onboards Brisa: A New Era of Web Development

References

Breaking Down the Factors that Affect Development Costs

Table of Contents

How much does it cost to develop an app?

The impact of project management on development costs

Triple constraint

Cost of a change vs. ability to make a change over time

The importance of ongoing maintenance and support in development cost management

The importance of outsourcing on development costs

Conclusion