Alpha Anywhere vs. React Native

The speed of development from concept, through development and delivery of the end product is so impressive [with Alpha Anywhere]. There is an impressive array of genies and helper functions meaning that you can focus on what matters, the end user experience. It is not a "No code" solution but it is a very impressive "low code" solution which allows detailed access under the hood to tweak the applications to your own needs and the needs of your clients.

We are implementing React Native framework for the development of the Front-End for the machine learning models maintenance and monitoring website. It provides meaningful error messages, and time-saving and robust tools make it a premium choice over other platforms. Moreover, it provides intelligent debugging tools and error report mechanisms. And most importantly for us, it provides the aesthetic minimal functionality to learn in order to implement it, thereby eliminating the need to work in Xcode or Android Studio for iOS or Android apps respectively.

Incentivized

• Our company had been creating small business applications since the 1980's, when we used DBase IV (don't laugh... that's what was available). Then, we got more "sophisticated" with Microsoft Access. Clearly, we would always be limited with what we can do with those two programs. By accident, during an Internet search, we saw and ad for Alpha Anywhere (back then, it was called Alpha V). After working with the 30 free trial for just two weeks, we retired Access, for good. The best part was Alpha's flexibility in its use of "back end" data tables. That allowed us to use existing Access tables as we redesigned the front-end program (Alpha ships with its own DBF system, but we prefer SQL-Based tables). You can choose, SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, Access, Paradox (actually, too many to name) for your tables. You can even create links to Excel spreadsheets or QuickBooks Tables. It's outstanding!
• Alpha allows developers to create very large and very complex programs. However, it's also a great choice for RAD (Rapid Application Development) for those who need to be up and running quickly or for less experienced programmers. Actually, the interface truly allows for "codeless" development of your application (more on that later). That means you can design a fully functional application, without typing a single line of code. They have some examples on their website.
• My favorite part of Alpha is that it is constantly adding features and functions that allow us to do more with our applications. In fact, one of my biggest problems is that I need more time to learn and practice the added features as fast as they are introduced
• Prior to Alpha Anywhere, we never considered creating/developing "mobile" applications (for tablets, smartphones, etc.). Alpha created a unique "panel" system that makes those application work great... and allows for the design of very sophisticated Apps.

Incentivized

• Customized Components
• State Management
• Extensibility
• Usage and Community

Incentivized

• I really enjoyed product when the database was a part of it, less maintenance
• Converting to the cloud has been challenging
• Security setup should be simpler, like Softr or Stacker

• Performance is still lower than native app development (Kotlin, Swift, etc.)
• Not efficient design-wise (if you are planning to implement some advanced design, then you should reconsider the approach provided by React Native)
• Issues with the update to the last release of React Native

Incentivized

Alpha Anywhere is a full-stack IDE. It’s no code and low code, but you can also custom code if you need to. About 10% of our application is no code. 80% is low code and 10% is custom code.

Decision for React Native came mainly from the big popularity of the framework. Thus, we had a big base of resources we could come back to. We also used it because it is a javascript framework. Thus, we could utilize the already existing experience in javascript and web development to ensure a smoother implementation of the app.

Incentivized

• Allows for a great return on investment since you can quickly become very productive and complete more projects and applications in a shorter period of time with hand coding and the normal programming headaches of PHP, C#, Angular, etc.
• You can afford to take on more and smaller projects since they will require far less time to complete than more traditional development environments.
• Alpha Anywhere is continuously updated coming out with new features and capabilities on essentially a daily basis. Continuous improvement and frequent updates allows you to always stay ahead of the curve and competitors.
• Alpha Anywhere allows you to offer lower cost solutions that will be completed in less time and that will be much easier to support and maintain.

Incentivized

• Decreased the development process time via robust and easy-to-use platform
• Easier to debug with a provided intelligent tool as well as error-prone messages, which allows developing in a paced manner for the decreased Time-To-Market
• Reusable code base can directly impact lead time and thereby on ROI in a positive manner

Incentivized