Complexity that isn't driven by user needs

A few months ago, Pixel Pioneers published a short interview with the OG of the Lean Web, Jeremy Keith.

The whole interview is fantastic, but this bit really stood out at me…

Pixel Pioneers: And on the flipside, what bugs you most about the web at the moment?

Jeremy: How much time have you got?

Seriously though, the thing that’s really bugged me for the past decade is the increasing complexity of “modern” frontend development when it isn’t driven by user needs. Yes, I’m talking about JavaScript frameworks like React and the assumption that everything should be a single page app.

When I advocate for vanilla technologies, I often get asked, “But what about complex projects that require a lot of state-driven UI and dynamic interactions?”

Yep, those are complex! They probably require a bit more tooling. There are a few realities we seem to ignore as an industry, though…

1. Most of the projects that we build aren’t actually that complex. The web is still largely just documents.
2. Many projects that are that complex would better serve the people who used them if they weren’t.
3. When projects are complex and should be, there are lots of tools today that are a better choice than React and other similarly large JS libraries.

If that resonates with you, I’d love to see you over at the Lean Web Club.

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