Hey guys, I’m legit struggling with deciding the stack setup for my next project. I really want to code in elixir for the backend but I want the front end to be easily editable by other developers. I cannot afford an Elixir developer, but a JS frontend developer is much more within my range. I much prefer being in the backend.
Right now I’m thinking about either having a Phoenix or Absinthe backend with a JS frontend, or to do full on sveltekit. Ideally, I’d like to have the first, but I’m not sure how to most productively implement this.
So how best to I optimize the workflow between an Elixir backend and a JS frontend? As a solo-dev, that aims to expand how would you recommend doing this? Do I have a sveltekit server in between for SSR and file based routing? That would mean I’d have two servers I’d have to deal with, which doesn’t make much sense…
It’s very overwhelming for me and I definitely have analysis paralysis but I would love to have some guidance on this.
Thank you in advance!
PS- I’m still quite new to all of this so maybe I’m missing some concepts that would make this easier.
Having done a quite large solo project myself, I did regret it not being LiveView. The additional setup for SSR, API mapping etc was quite time consuming. Also the JS world has the awkward habit of hypes and breaking changes. Svelte might soon be a no-go once the JS framework train moves further.
However, when you really want to go the JS frontend route, the combo Absinth + Apollo is great. GraphQL provides some flexility and easier mental model (imho) while working on a separate backend and frontend.
Ps. The reason JS devs are cheaper is mostly because the language is popular and basics easy learned making for a good stream of newbies. It’s not a bad thing perse, but remember that 100x a cheap rate is more expensive then 20x a higher rate.
LiveView has been making leaps and bounds, not just with performance tweaks but in areas which some might have considered weak points for this type of tech.
Personally I would go LiveView first and then (use it/Phoenix with) Hologram and then something like Svelte if I really really had to (tho in that case I would probably really be needing something WASM).
I absolutely love LiveView, but as OP said… it’s hard finding an Elixir dev; it’s much easier finding a frontend JS dev.
Even with LiveView, I’m not a very good frontend dev. It might make more sense for me to make a GraphQL backend, then let a frontend dev work their magic in React or Vue or whatever is popular these days.
It just compiles a svelte component where you can treat it like a component or partial. The interop between live view and this library doesn’t exist so you have to prevent it from updating when using live view. As for SSR, I think not since it’s a JS component, but I’m not certain.
Exactly my issue. I love Elixir as a backend but I want to be able to have someone come in and work with the front end because I am really not that good at, nor do I like, the front end.
What about coming at it from the other direction, find someone that you can work well with, understands your vision for the product and you can trust, take their advice on a setup that would play to their strengths? As long as things stay within one of the big options you won’t have much problem finding other front end devs who can work on it should you need to.
You can also specify a file path as your package version, so you set the relative file path to where your phoenix lib is. That’s how phoenix did it in prior versions to.
LiveView might be a no-go if you really don’t want to touch any view code or HTML at all, but hear me out, it really sounds to me like it would fit your use case perfectly.
Have you considered hiring someone that only knows HTML and CSS? And ideally some design skills. You mentioned cost being a concern, that would be even cheaper than hiring a front-end JS dev.
You would need to build the functionality on the LiveView pages but you can do it with no concern for CSS or aesthetics, and then they come after you and sprinkle all the beauty on the HTML and CSS.
From where I am sitting you need to weigh the cost of two things:
SPA
Setting up and maintaining a JS front-end application with Webpack, Babel, Node, NPM, A framework, api endpoints.
Authentication for those endpoints
When you switch to a different front-end dev they will want to change it all because there is no industry standard for what set of things to use… And when that happens it will be very difficult for you to convince them that the re-tooling is unnecessary, because they should be the expert and you are self-professing to “prefer being in the backend”.
When your front-end dev is working on updating Webpack or one of it’s cousins, they will run into some blocker that requires some config change in Phoenix, which they won’t know how to do, then they will ask you to help them fix it, because you are the Elixir expert, and there you will be, in the exact front-end that you want to pay someone else to work on.
LiveView
Learning how to use LiveView (assuming you don’t already know) and write some views. Making some code changes as the library matures (trust me, they have been minimal, I’ve ben keeping up with it).
Spending time writing the un-styled front-end code in LiveView.
If you switch devs, they will complain about how the last person set up the CSS and want to move a lot of the CSS around or use a different technology for writing the CSS at a higher level.
If I was a betting man, I would bet you are going to spend significantly less time and money on LiveView while delivering features faster.
This is a great point and this is actually how many large companies go about it - there are the initial concepts which are then made into more complete designs, those are then built in html/css/js as a static build, then finally ported over to the framework or system being used (this is how we built devtalk and all previous projects I have worked on).
Personally moving forward I want to try the reverse, build the system and then focus on the design and UI once everything is working as required. In part because back ends are much more complex than they used to be but also because it’s easier to try a few different approaches (or MVPs) to get a feel for what fits best for your vision.
Or find someone you think is capable and just get them to learn Elixir/Phoenix
We’re really lucky that we have so many books and learning material and I am constantly being surprised when I think surely there can’t be many more topics to write about Elixir now, then PragProg (or someone else) comes out with another one
I found this out the hard way… after hours of debugging a LiveView that stopped working after upgrading Phoenix… 
