In this meeting, the State Changers discuss solutions for managing client interactions through real-time chat using various tools. Initially, the discussion is focused on using Bubble and contemplating a transition to Xano. However, the challenge lies in getting a message to appear on the user's screen without a webhook or a similar mechanism that prompts fetching of data from the database.
During this conversation, it's noted that Xano's integration with Abely, commonly used for push notifications, may have some limitations due to which a caution is advised. The State Changers discuss the difficulties related to push notifications, using the case of another group member's unsuccessful implementations with Abely as an example. Instead, they recommend implementing Flutterflow's native push notification scheme for phone-based apps. There is an exploration of two ways to generate new data on the client side. One is via WebSockets, which involves continuous bidirectional communication between the server and the client. The other approach is "polling," where a timer process repeatedly checks for new data. The State Changers suggest starting off with the polling method as it's comparatively simpler and can resolve many issues. WebSockets and integrating high-level services like Abely or Airship may be the next steps if you wish for more immediate responses. However, these may increase server costs due to the constant open connection. A third option suggested is outsourcing the chat functionality to specialized chat services like Twilio, which also offers webhook functionality to synchronize chat data with your database. However, this option could potentially limit customization based on specific user experience (UX) needs. Overall, the State Changers encourage first implementing a simple, usable solution before investing in more complex tools or overbuilding based on hypothetical future needs. Keywords mentioned: Xano, Bubble, Abely, Flutterflow, Twilio, WebSockets, webhook.
(Source: Office Hours 10/28 )
