Perhaps I'm missing something, but aren't local-first apps the overwhelming norm? Like if I think about the apps I use, my friends use etc, most of them are local. Unless the author means "local first web apps", which would make more sense. And I think the oxymoronic nature of a "local first web app" gives a clue as to their unpopularity.

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crazygringo 4 days ago | parent | next [-]

The context should be clear that this is talking exclusively about apps that store their data in the cloud.

Local-first here means starting with a local data model that syncs to the cloud from the start, rather than an app that only works online.

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b_e_n_t_o_n 4 days ago | parent [-]

What are some examples of popular apps that do this which aren't web apps, and could feasibly work offline? Every native app I use is local-first. Eg. Photoshop, Blender, Figma, Xcode, Zed, Kitty, Affinity Photo/Designer, Notes, Music, Calendar, Messenger, Maps, Email, etc.

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rbits 4 days ago | parent | next [-]

Notion is a big one. I tried it out but didn't end up using it because it doesn't work offline.

(I know you said not web apps, but it does have a desktop version)

	▲	b_e_n_t_o_n 3 days ago \| parent [-]
		Is the desktop version more than just a webview? :P

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crazygringo 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I already explained: "exclusively about apps that store their data in the cloud".

So Photoshop, Blender, etc. -- these are not apps that store their data in the cloud. They're using filesystems. There's no sync. They're not local-first, they're just local.

But the Apple apps -- Notes, Music, Calendar -- they are very much local-first. Their source of truth is in iCloud when you activate that, but they fully work offline as well and then sync once there's a connection. This is completely different from e.g. Photoshop.

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zahlman 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

> Like if I think about the apps I use, my friends use etc, most of them are local.

Ones that you have to pay for directly?

Aside from game devs it's hard for me to think of who the major players are in that space any more. And now even when the game has a single-player mode it seems to demand an Internet connection, whether for DRM reasons, "anti-cheat" (why do you care?), updates etc.

	▲	johnnyanmac 4 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		They aren't major players, but there are still plenty of apps that are more "app with options to save to cloud" than "thin client with maybe some caching options". A quick skim on my phone shows it mostly pertains to apps that connect to other hardware (my router/modem and smart bulb, for instance), utility apps (file exploreres, calculators, and task lists), and local media apps. But one enables continual revenues streams and the other succumbed to extremely rampant piracy in the app space. As such, even many games on mobile are service games rather than a local single player game.
	▲	b_e_n_t_o_n 4 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Even the apps I pay (or paid) for directly are local first. Eg the Adobe suite, Unity Pro, Affinity. Some, like Copilot, do require internet but there is no feasible way to get offline access for an online service.