Does the post from cheese in August 2024 with patrick's reply not clarify that the team believe it is not feasable?
"I would have setup serverconnect for NodeJS differently now so that it would make use of the full functionality, but then it would be totally different from PHP/ASP." - everything is possible, it's just requires time.
Of course, developing AI is much more trend-oriented approach for Wappler team.
AI is definitely worth following trends right now - just look at the market. The big problem with IDEs these days is that loads of non-technical people are jumping into coding. Apart from prompt engineering, they honestly don't have a clue what's going on until they get feedback from an agent (if they've even set up MCP correctly) or test things themselves.
I actually started with Wappler myself - that's how I got into development full time and really understood how JavaScript works under the hood. Being able to actually understand your application beyond just throwing prompts at it, while still having AI to help build things? That's golden.
I get why they're focusing on AI, even though I'm not using Wappler's AI features myself yet. Sure, there are feature requests I'd love to see happen, but think about it - they've got a small team and the app creation market is getting more aggressive by the day. You can only ignore these trends for so long. At the end of the day, this isn't community-maintained software, and just keeping your current subscribers happy without any growth? That's a terrible business model in this market.
Me personally? I'm holding off using Wappler AI manager until AI actually learns more about Wappler and I don't need to send massive context windows every time. Unfortuantelly, something like claude code and proper promps are efficient enough to create better than the wappler AI manager can, just because of the conext window, the moment gemini starts producing decent code? I'm in. But that's just my take on it - make of it what you will!
2 Likes
Do you remember the last new front-end or back-end component the Wappler team introduced? I do — it was the PDF Creator back in February 2024. Since then, we’ve only seen updates like the new Wappler UI and AI integration. Meanwhile, a large number of feature requests and serious bugs continue to be ignored. I’m really disappointed with the direction they’ve taken and the current level of communication with the community.
Wappler Team used to share their development roadmap - Wappler Roadmap 2022/2023 and beyond - and what now? Silence!
1 Like
Not to mention, a lot of this never even came out. It was stated TinyMCE was 70% complete in Q3 22. We still don't have it.
I continue my stance of if this isn't happening, that's fine, but It would be at least nice to get an actual update in this thread and not elsewhere in another because It just causes even more confusion. Same goes for all the other feature requests, like a new text editor. Even getting a tag on posts like this with "Incompatible" for the time being would be great.
Likewise, if it's not happening, the useless passport.js file(s) should really be removed from new projects, because they still get added.
I get Wappler is a small team, but the tiniest bit of transparency would be nice. It was posts like these that led to the previous roadmap being posted, but seemingly nothing has happened since then with regard to feature request statuses.
1 Like
Since then, George said they were looking at Facebooks "Lexical" as a better alternative to TinyMCE but nothing mentioned since.
Oh I agree with all of your points! The transparency is very poor! The last MAJOR integration? Probably leaflet maps! I personally generate PDF at the backend, therefore, it's irrelevant to me! But hear me out! The AI integration within wappler may be much larger than you think!
Server Connect components? With proper instructions they already can be made without much JS knowledge! All they need is to introduce very strict ruleset for the AI to follow, with such, you can create tailor made extensions for your need! At the moment, because there aren't strict instructions for the AI to follow, it introduces .hjson formatting mistakes, int for the bindable integer values, it forgets to update .hjson file when new functions are added. Security concerns? Hell yea! I used to loop code from least intelligent finishing with anthropic, with each of them adding their findings to extensions md file. This I would do twice if not three times, with them sometimes finding additional vulnerabilities. This has worked exceptionally well, since I no longer use Copilot i opt for Sonnet and Opus now. It actually produces well documented extensions!
Now I cannot say the same for App Connect. Simply because I haven't had much time to dip into them, and also, their development being slightly different, with them having their dedicated file/package.json and having them referenced at components(?) file. I cannot comment much about them.
But imagine, if instead of users having to rely on creating marketplace for wappler extensions (which is great by the way! long time coming, and I would most certainly invest into someones maintained extension than having to maintain it myself for the quick project I have made for a client), wappler created strict rulesets and documentation for the AI to create server connect and app connect extensions? Create new extensions menu, where you'd be able to see the files for the power users, with extensions only appearing on their wappler community extensions section pending security and licensing approval? We're talking about community driven extension marketplace, with hundreds if not thousands of saved man hours, while focusing on important things, such as bug fixes, and extensions that require core file implementations! Because don't get me wrong, I would LOVE greater SSR handling. I am using it very OFTEN and having to either open them with data binding tool and wappler mistaking syntaxes as the operator signs is the bane of my life! And without this? forget about binding them visually! You need to take the screenshot of your server side values and bind them manually, otherwise? they turn into f*cking operators!
But executed properly, we're talking about something that brings you money with minimum effort! Check for licensing of packages? easily automated. Check for the package integrity? scan it! All you do is run through the code yourself, deploy some agents for security risks and PUBLISH! Yes maintaining them is the different ask! Maybe a possibility to fork? Community Maintained extensions with push requests? Sky is the limit at this day of age, yes, AI hallucinate, yes sometimes it does something completely opposite of what you've asked for, but having a good base of knowledge for the server connect or app connect could be huge! We may not be talking about ROBLOX type of success, but something that could bring wappler to a completely different level!
At the end of the day, yes! The transparency is lacking. The stripe documentation? there's more than what, 300 elements? there's only documentation to webhooks and checkout elements, with out of date cli being installed. Existing documentation? Much of it outdated!
I know that there were talks about using AI to document those (I believe i have read it somewhere in forums), the feature request that are bug fix requests and sometimes even security risk fix request? they are piling up! But at this pace, I highly doubt if they can bring in app connect/server connect features or components at this pace! They need to become smarter, especially when then next startup, could make the wappler just a thing of the past! Because remember, at the end of the day, for us it's a just monthly subscription that is keeping us from jumping ship, and without future growth? Could be a slow descent into abis!
And that's a big problem when combined with everything else, IMO. There's for sure been times when I've considered making an extension, and then thought, "what's the point - It's meant to be coming soon to Wappler itself". The text editor being one of those times.
We heard TinyMCE is close, but then the possible switch to Lexical, and then nothing since for a considerable amount of time. Personally speaking, it leaves me in limbo, and I'm sure it does with others, because I don't want to spend tons of time on an extension if the built-in version is going to release next week, or whenever it might be.
The Wappler team is small, and if I'm being honest I think we can all agree extensions do/are going to play a bit part of Wapplers future because there are so many things that could be added, but when a majority of feature requests have been left in a limbo state of "We're working on it", in some cases for literal years with no updates, it's going to turn people off making them (for feature requests that have been made).
I've been following this discussion closely, and I understand some of the frustrations regarding feature progression and roadmap transparency. It’s natural to want to see every requested feature materialize quickly.
However, I think it's crucial to look at Wappler's strategy from a broader perspective. The focus on AI, while perhaps seemingly a deviation from traditional component development, is a forward-thinking and necessary move in today's rapidly evolving tech landscape. As Digo pointed out, more non-technical users are entering the development space, and AI is becoming an indispensable tool for efficient application creation. For a small, dedicated team like Wappler's, prioritizing a trend that can democratize development and significantly expand their user base makes sound business sense. It's about securing future growth and staying competitive in a market hungry for aggressive app creation tools.
Wappler, at its core, remains an incredibly powerful and intuitive platform. Its ability to handle complex full-stack development, allowing me to build comprehensive solutions, is unparalleled for a low-code/no-code environment. The integrated workflow for front-end, back-end, and database management is a game-changer for productivity and scalability. We can build robust, 100% web-based applications from scratch, and that foundational strength hasn't wavered.
I believe their strategic moves, even if they sometimes mean a shift in focus, are aimed at strengthening the platform's longevity and expanding its capabilities for all of us. The community's feedback is essential in this regard, just as it's crucial for the Wappler team to address the significant challenges and bottlenecks we face daily with our clients. It's truly a Nash equilibrium where both sides contribute to themselves and the optimal outcome.
3 Likes
@George Would you like to join the discussion and share some perspective from the DEV team? As you can see above, there are many questions from the community about Wappler's future. A bit of roadmap insight from you would be greatly appreciated.
He is on holiday with his family
Hey everyone, just a quick note to add some context here.
@George and our team are currently on a well-deserved holiday with their families. That said, you can imagine the level of dedication it takes for George to still be monitoring the forum and replying to help requests while on vacation 
Regarding the discussion above, it’s important to note that many of the concerns raised are about issues that, in reality, don’t exist. It is true, that over the past few months, we’ve been mainly focused on the release of a very stable Wappler 7, improved UI and the integration of the new AI features, which took a lot of time and energy. Now that this is mostly done, we’ll soon get back to working on new components and bug fixes after the break. Of course we will continue working on improving the AI integration, as we believe this is the future.
We also want to say that we do keep a close eye on feature requests from the community. But not every request can or will be added.
For example, the passport.js integration mentioned above has already been explained by @patrick - it's not something we plan to support for now, due to technical reasons, not that we just don't like who requested it.
And just a reminder - as we explained many times, our roadmap is not set in stone. It changes often based on feedback, priorities, and new developments. It’s meant to give an idea of direction, not fixed promises.
So, the future of Wappler is looking great and we appreciate everyone’s input and support. We’ll share more updates once the team is back from holiday!
In the meantime - enjoy the summer, take it easy and don’t stress over issues that aren’t really there. Wappler has a bright future, and there’s plenty of good stuff coming.
9 Likes
At present Wappler AI has no training on extensions.
It has yet to be added but George says it will come when ready.
2 Likes
If i was to take a single point from this, perhaps the idea of an additional tag to FRs may be a simple but effective tool perhaps to flag FRs such as "Under development", "Accepted but not started", "On Hold-impractical", "Rejected", "Unnecesary" etc so users can see the status of the FR
10 Likes