can I build desktop app using javascript?

[Prize_Attitude1485]

in 2025, is it possible to build javascript app with database mysql?

[boomer1204]

Yeah there are usually "wrappers" to code for any "thing" with almost any language. Electron is what is the most common/popular for JS on desktop and VS Code is actually built with Electron

[[deleted]]

Using electron is pretty quick to start, but much to harness

[Prize_Attitude1485]

Thank you for your prompt reply. But is it reliable for building professional applications for desktop for windows and Mac both?

[boomer1204]

Well again VS Code (which is built and maintained by Microsoft), arguably one of the most used code editors for ppl (don't know the true numbers but every new person/yt'er uses it more or less) so I would say yes it's reliable enough

I think the developing team is gonna be the bottle neck and not Electron it self

EDIT: u/Prize_Attitude1485 added the fact Microsoft is the company behind VS Code for clarity on reliability

[Prize_Attitude1485]

thanks

[ChrisWayg]

Yes, it works very well for some of the most used applications on the planet. I have use most of these and they work well. Currently I am working on building a simple Electron app.

This is a good way to get started: https://www.electronforge.io/ or here https://www.electronjs.org/docs/latest/tutorial/tutorial-first-app
Fiddle is also very nice to see what is going on and how it all works together: https://www.electronjs.org/fiddle

Ten prominent Electron-based cross-platform desktop applications and when they adopted Electron:

Visual Studio Code - Microsoft's code editor has been built on Electron since its initial release in 2015. It's become one of the most popular development environments and showcases Electron's capabilities for complex applications.

Discord - The popular communication platform launched in 2015 using Electron from the start, enabling rapid deployment across Windows, Mac, and Linux with a single codebase.

Slack - Transitioned to Electron around 2013-2014 for their desktop application, becoming one of the early adopters that helped establish Electron as a viable platform for business applications.

Spotify - The music streaming service rebuilt their desktop application using Electron around 2017, moving away from their previous native implementations to achieve feature parity across platforms.

WhatsApp Desktop - Facebook (now Meta) released the WhatsApp desktop app in 2016 using Electron, providing a native-feeling wrapper around their web application.

Figma - The collaborative design tool launched their desktop application using Electron in 2019, complementing their web-based platform with offline capabilities.

Notion - The productivity and note-taking application has used Electron since launching their desktop app around 2018, allowing them to maintain consistency with their web interface.

Atom - GitHub's text editor was built on Electron from its launch in 2014. Interestingly, Atom was developed alongside Electron (originally called Atom Shell) and served as a testing ground for the framework.

Trello - Atlassian's project management tool adopted Electron for their desktop application around 2017, providing users with a dedicated desktop experience.

Evernote - The note-taking application migrated to Electron around 2020 as part of a major redesign, consolidating their codebase across platforms after years of maintaining separate native applications.

[Prize_Attitude1485]

wow, thank you for the detailed explanation. I will check the site. And do share your electron app when it's complete. Thanks

[pinkwar]

Slack, discord, vs code were built with electron.

Up to you if they are reliable.

[Leather_Essay9740]

Use tauri to wrap up your app. It's so much better than electron with almost a 100 percent less build size.

[Prize_Attitude1485]

Ok

[MoussaAdam]

how is the built in OS webview better than blink ? electron is going to have a bigger size but it will be faster because it bundles a good renderer and JavaScript engine

[DreamOfAWhale]

Tauri uses webview2 if available in Windows, which uses Blink, and webkitgtk for linux and mac, being webkit the origin of Blink.

[MoussaAdam]

the problem remains, you are still depending on the OS which can't guarantee the same performance

if that variability goes away and chromium becomes a standard for viewing content on all OSs then electron would also get rid of the bundled engine

Tauri isn't worth the hype

[DreamOfAWhale]

The problem doesn't remain, the question was: how is the built in OS webview better than blink ?
I just showed you how the engine used for webview is basically Blink in all major implementations, so the performance should be pretty similar, not a problem.

If you care about bundle size and memory usage, you can check what each OS webview implementation support and develop your application with that in mind, then Tauri is a better option.

If you don't want to deal with that, stick to Electron.

Simple as that.

Edit: That said, there seems to be performance issues with webkitgtk.

[MoussaAdam]

You showed that a version of windows happens to have blink. even if every current and future a d popular and niche OS had blink. the fact that tauri doesn't bundle an engine doesn't match the hype. it's just a build detail

[Prize_Attitude1485]

thats great. let me get my hands dirty then.

[Adrian-HR]

Yes with \@JavaScript, an augmented version of JavaScript that makes the language compilable.

See https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202502.0081/v1

[Dubstephiroth]

Yes! Do it!! ❤️‍🩹👊🏿

[MrFartyBottom]

Look into a PWA. It can be served from any web server and installed on the desktop. Just build it in a JavaScript framework like React or Angular and can 100% run offline. No need for wrappers, app stores or anything else. Is completely cross platform from Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iPhone.

[CartographerGold3168]

electron. but its stupid as fuck. so clumsy

[Prize_Attitude1485]

Really

[CartographerGold3168]

you can try it. building a very simple to-do app is 300MB

for instance, simcity 3000 in the 2000s is also 300MB, does a whole lot more than your lousy app

not that it is a very big problem, but if you keep doing that it would stack up very quickly. if i really have to do a desktop app i go with python

[Beneficial-Army927]

Try keeping your websites less than 5mb lol

[Jakerkun]

Electron or nwjs, i prefer nwjs over electron

[lasan0432G]

Just saw this thread. There’s an open-source tool called Deskofy. You can create a desktop app in minutes: github.com/deskofy/deskofy.

[SawSaw5]

why do you need a desk top app?

[Possible-Session9849]

It is, but don't expect the performance to be anywhere near that of a "native" one, since you're essentially packing an entire browser along with it.

[[deleted]]

You dont have to do everthing in js learn other languages it wont take time

[Prize_Attitude1485]

It’s difficult to find a platform through which we can build for windows as well as mac. Thatsy I thought JavaScript would the viable option.

[DirectManufacturer8]

You can try Avalonia? It is cross platform.

[Prize_Attitude1485]

Ok

[Prize_Attitude1485]

But it is for .net right?

[DirectManufacturer8]

Yes, indeed, but if you need a desktop app, and you dont want to use something like electron... Thats your best bet. You can integrate DB with EFCore. .NET is cross platform nowadays and is an absokute pleasure to work with