[_cipher_]

> Also coding in the browser has been a miserable experience.

Basically that ^.

Having tried some web IDEs, I can say it's not a pleasant situation when browser crashes or hangs.

Putting aside local tools or whatever, the editor must must be available at all times, with or without internet connection. At least that's my view. :)

[jtheory]

Heck, even email in a browser still is rough going, and I'm using a webmail interface Google has been working on for ages now, in Google's own browser -- but I still write most of my emails in a native mail application.

"Edit X from any anywhere" is a great idea, and "Every time you open the application you'll automatically have the newest version" is a great idea, but when you add them together and get "our application will run in the browser" it falls flat (still) in crucial ways.

Just basic workflow -- work on your code in the browser-based IDE, then (in the same browser, with your multiple tabs and windows) go dig up some ideas on SO, check your gmail... Now flip back quickly to your IDE. Oh -- but it's not in your dock/taskbar, or Alt-tab menu. Which of those browser windows was it in?

You can work around this by tweaking your workflow, and obviously Google in particular is working on browser apps that bridge the gap; I use Postman in Chrome, and that's a better experience. But this is more important than I think a lot of people realized.

[task_queue]

I tried using my laptop to edit a document I had saved on Google Docs on the train once. Docs was unusable with a cellular connection. I didn't get to edit the document and now I post on the internet about it at 3am.