The term Cross Platform is in the world of programming for various applications and software. But what is the meaning of this word and what are the characteristics of cross-platform applications and software?
We know that today smartphones or mobile phones each have different platforms or operating systems. Therefore, in the world of products and products of mobile applications, each product must be a function of one of these platforms and can be installed in one of these existing systems.
For example, a smartphone or tablet could have an Apple (iOS) or Android platform. In the past, when an application was for these devices. It had to be designed and developed on the same platform. According to the standards and programmable and readable language, depending on which platform it was to be used on. Because none of the programming code on these platforms makes sense to each other and can not be used and executed.
Therefore, every time a company wanted to design and produce an application or software, it had to devote days, months, or even years to designing and programming the application for both platforms. . Therefore, a company or startup could publish an application that can be on both platforms. Users of both platforms can download and use their respective versions.
That’s why the idea of Cross Platform was formed to significantly waste programmers’ time and energy. Cross-platform is a special technology that enables programmers to all design their application once under a specific and common programming language and use it on different platforms.
Of course, these cross-platform applications or this cross-platform production and development space in general have their own unique characteristics and also have advantages and disadvantages, about which we provide information in the following.
What is Cross platform development?
As mentioned earlier, normally when you want to design an app you have to code it once for the Android platform and once for the Apple iOS platform, as each needs its own programming language. So you have to go according to the following plans:
- If you want to program your application for Apple, you must use Objective C or Swift.
- If you want to program your application for Android, you must use Java or Kathleen.
- And if you want your app to run on smartphones or tablets with Windows platform, you have to use C # or XAML.
Therefore, if you want all mobile phone owners with any platform to be able to benefit from your application, you must go through the design and development process for each of these platforms separately, which will solve the following problems and challenges for You will bring:
1- Cost:
For each of these platforms, you need expert staff to program on that platform, and you need to consider the cost of each force separately.
2- Knowledge:
Finding professional professionals who can do the design work for each of these platforms accurately and perfectly is also a major challenge.
3- Unification:
Since each of these platforms has its own specifications, programming language, user interface, standards and features, in order for all users of your application to have the same user experience, you should try your application across this platform. Should be uniform and all its factors, including its technical structure and appearance, should be as similar as possible. This in itself is a very serious concern and challenge. What can be easily on one platform is an unenforceable constraint on another.
Therefore, cross-platform appeared so that once you use a programming language such as JavaScript, design your application and then adapt it to all platforms by cross-platform and run it. This can be in two ways:
1- Indigenous applications – Cross-platform development:
You can use react native, Xamarin and native script to do this. In this case, at the end of the day, you have an application that basically uses the native API. But can be on all platforms without the need for separate coding. This is an ideal experience of designing applications for all platforms in the easiest and least expensive way possible.
2- Hybrid applications – cross-platform development:
This is a line from the development of native cross-platform applications. In fact, cross-platform hybrid applications are on a structure in a web browser and HTML5, CSS and JavaScript.
So the application is about to code and then output to it on a smartphone. In this type of development and programming, coders use a native web programming language, but eventually put it in a wrapper for different operating systems and execute it.
What are the benefits of cross-platform?
There are several benefits to using cross-platform development:
- Application design costs are greatly reducing. As it does not need to be separate for a particular platform each time. Also, when the application encounters a bug. It does not need for debugging on different platforms. It is enough to detect the bug once and eliminate it to eliminate it on all platforms.
- Much less time is for designing and producing, and an application can be for different platforms.
- Uniformity can be on all platforms. This allows all users of the application on each platform to have as much user experience as possible.
- Companies can have many users for their applications because any user with any smartphone can use the company-designed application.
- Software development tools are familiar and usable to most programmers, and we do not need to look for expert and familiar staff to design that version of our application.
- Cross-platform is an ideal space for building an application prototype. Because any idea can be quick in designing and production in the shortest time with the lowest cost. An application prototype, the audience can escape.
- Cross-platform has revolutionized in-network and in-company applications as many companies use special applications for their staff and employees for scheduling, attendance, etc., and so on. Another concern is designing applications for specific platforms used by their employees.
What are the disadvantages or limitations of cross-platform?
There are also limitations and disadvantages to using a cross-platform:
Programs and applications can not benefit from their efficiency because they are not for that platform. Therefore, on a particular platform, they may not have the highest quality animation, HTML5, speed, and more.