What is the difference between low code and no code?

Recent about low code 、 No code is extremely hot , Almost large and small development communities 、 Forum 、 Offline meeting , Just don't talk about low code , I'm sorry , Not even up to grade , Actually , Don't make a fuss , Maybe you have used low code solutions in projects and products 、 Realization , Low code 、 No code can be understood as a trendy name .

What is low code ？

Low code is a fast application development (RAD) Method , You can automatically generate code through visual building blocks such as drag and drop and drop-down menu interfaces . This automation allows low code users to focus on differentiation rather than programming commonalities . Low code is the middle ground between manual coding and no code , Because its users can still add code to the automatically generated code .

Examples of applications suitable for low code development include business process management platforms 、 Website and mobile application development 、 Evaluation management software and other cross departmental tools 、 Integration with external plug-ins and cloud based next generation technologies , For example, machine learning library 、 Robot process automation and legacy application modernization .

What is no code ？

No code is also a RAD Method , It is usually regarded as modular plug and play 、 A subset of low code development methods . Although in low code , The developer did some processing in the form of script or manual coding , But no code has a completely noninterference approach ,100% Rely on visualization tools .

Examples of applications suitable for codeless development include self-service applications for business users 、 instrument panel 、 Mobile and Web Applications 、 Content management platform and data pipeline builder . No code is great for building stand-alone applications quickly 、 ordinary UI And simple automation , It is used for calendar planning tools 、 Facility management tools and with configurable columns and filters BI Reporting applications .

Low code and no code automation

Low code application platform (LCAP) — Also known as low code development platform (LCDP) — Include an integrated development environment (IDE), It has API、 The code template 、 Built in functions such as reusable plug-in modules and graphic connectors , It can be used to automate a large proportion of the application development process .LCAP It is usually used as a cloud based platform as a service (PaaS) Solution .

The working principle of low code platform is to reduce complexity by using visualization tools and process modeling technology , Where users use visualization tools to define workflows 、 Business rules 、 User interface, etc . Behind the scenes , The complete workflow will be automatically converted into code .LCAP It is mainly used by professional developers to automate the general aspects of coding , To redirect the work of developing the last mile .

Examples of such automation platforms include low code application platforms 、 Intelligent business process management suite 、 Citizen development platforms and other such RAD Tools .

On the codeless development platform (NCDP)（ Sometimes called citizen automation and development platform (CADP)） in , All code is generated through drag and drop or click interfaces . Professional developers and citizen developers （ Non technical users or non developers with limited or no coding skills ） All use NCDP.

Low code and no code ： Similarities and benefits

The similarity between low code and no code is that they are designed to abstract complex aspects of coding by using visual interfaces and preconfigured templates . Both development platforms can be used as PaaS Solution , And use the design based on workflow to define the logical progress of data . Due to the common approach , They share many benefits ：

• Technology openness ： Low code and no code solutions are built to empower different types of users . This reduces the difficulty of hiring 、 Expensive experts and technicians .
• Productivity drivers ： Low code / No code can improve development speed 、 eliminate IT Backlog 、 Shorten the project timeline from months to days , And promote faster product launch .
• Get customer feedback quickly with less risk ： Before investing a lot of resources in the project , Low code / No code allows developers to get feedback from customers by showing easy to build prototypes . This will change the execution earlier in the project schedule / Do not implement the decision , So as to minimize risks and costs .
• Build more than buy ： Although commercial spot (COTS) Products can be expensive and have a one size fits all approach , But low code and no code encourage internal customization , Turn the needle “ structure ” In the dilemma of purchase and construction .
• Architecture consistency ： For crosscutting modules such as logging and auditing , Concentrated low code / No code platform can ensure the consistency of design and code . This unity is also useful when debugging applications , Because developers can spend time solving problems instead of understanding the framework .
• Cost effectiveness ： Because the team is smaller 、 Less resources 、 Lower infrastructure costs 、 Lower maintenance costs , Low code / No code is more cost-effective than developing it manually from scratch . It also brings better return on investment through faster agile releases .
• Business and IT Collaboration between ： Business and development teams traditionally share push-pull relationships . However , As more and more business users pass low code / No code movement involved in development , There is a better balance and understanding between these two seemingly different worlds .

What is the difference between low code and no code ？

Although there are subtle functional differences between their solutions , But there is a lot of overlap between these two methods （ Due to the confused positioning of low code and codeless platform suppliers ）. however , There are some important differences to consider ：

Target users

Low code For professional developers , To avoid copying the basic code , And create space for more complex aspects of development , So as to bring innovation and rich feature set . By automating the standard aspects of coding and adopting a syntax independent approach , It enables developers to retrain skills and expand their talent pool .

On the other hand ,No-code It is aimed at business users with rich domain knowledge , You may also have a little understanding of Technology , But it lacks the ability to write code manually . It also applies to include business users and software developers or small business owners and non IT A mixed team of teams , For example, human resources 、 Finance and Law .

Use cases

There is no code It is very suitable for front-end applications that can be quickly designed through drag and drop interface . A good candidate is to extract data from the source and report 、 analysis 、 Import and export data UI Applications .

Besides , No code is very suitable for replacing the business team based on Excel Report and other monotonous management tasks . Such projects are not easy to be IT prioritizing , But it can be the Savior of the business team . It is also very suitable for internal applications that do not bear a lot of functional burden and small enterprise applications with less development budget .

Low code , Have a detailed component library , It can be extended to applications with heavyweight business logic and extended to enterprise level . Besides , In order to work with other applications and external API Integrate , Connect to multiple data sources and build systems with safety barriers , need IT The lens , Low code is a better choice than no code .

Speed

Low code Need more training and time to join 、 Development and deployment , Because it provides more customization opportunities . But it is still much faster than traditional development .

Compared with low code , There is no code Highly configurable and plug and play , It takes less time to build . Test time is also reduced , Because the risk of potential errors usually introduced by manual coding is minimal . ad locum , Everything is to ensure that the configuration and data flow are set up correctly .

Open and closed systems

Low code It's an open system , Allow its users to extend functions through code . This means greater flexibility and reusability . for example , Users can create custom plug-ins and data source connectors to fit their use cases and reuse them later . But here's the thing ,LCAP Newer upgrades and patches need to be tested with manually introduced code .

There is no code Is a more closed system , It can only be extended through a templated feature set . This means limiting use cases and access to template plug-ins and integrations , But it's easier to ensure backward compatibility , Because there is no possibility of destroying future versions NCDP Manually write code .

Risk Management

Although this has always been a problem for low code and codeless platforms , But there is no shadow of code IT The risk is higher , This needs to be IT The team needs little or no intervention . This can lead to parallel infrastructures that are not closely monitored , This leads to security vulnerabilities and technical debt .

However , Low code Still in IT The fact that the team is protected helps ensure better governance and control .

Using range

Low code In terms of support for scalability and cross platform compatibility , Low code score is better than no code . Adding custom plug-ins and custom code opens up the possibility of wider implementation and use of multiple platforms .

There is no code It has low scalability and limited potential in connecting legacy systems or integrating with other platforms . therefore , It only solves a narrow set of use cases , And it has reduced expansion ability .

When to use low code and when to use no code

Low code and no code have their own advantages . The similarity between the two is not an easy decision . The best way is to evaluate the current requirements and make corresponding choices .

Here are a few questions to determine user needs ：

• What is the goal of using low code or no code software ？
• Who is the user ？ What is their programming expertise ？
• What is the scope and scale of the problem to be solved ？
• Whether the build requires custom integration with external and internal applications ？
• What is the required turnaround time ？
• How much control do users want to retain over the code ？
• Whether the application needs to deal with confidential data or security considerations ？

The two key issues here are ： What is the purpose of the application , Who will build it ？ Although these two issues are very important , But it's better to use a goal centered approach rather than a user centered approach —— in other words , What is better than who It is more important .

If the use case is complex , Need to integrate with other local or Cloud Applications , There are customer-oriented or key business needs , Or it needs to be deployed throughout the enterprise , So low code is the first choice . under these circumstances , Even if the user does not have the necessary programming language expertise , And IT The cooperation of teams or training programs can also solve these challenges .

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