Bubble.io

Bubble.io is an app-development platform that lets users build software applications without any code. This means that the developer does not need to have in-depth knowledge of core programming languages to build an application using Bubble. The platform offers drag-and-drop design in its visual editor, a powerful workflow engine that lets developers assign actions and workflows to elements on their page, a built-in encrypted database already set up for the application, and secure, scalable hosting to easily deploy the app to a live audience. Bubble can be accessed in a browser on a computer, tablet, or phone and its editor is open-ended, allowing the developer ot create very simple or complicated applications using the tool.

Main Features:

• Customize UI/UX with no code by building out logic and determining what happens as users navigate the application
• Manage data by designing, searching, and exporting data structures in data store
• Set up user accounts and enable log-ins with passwords or any OAuth 2.0 compatible provider
• Allocate more server resources to scale up from a demo app to a web-scale enterprise without technical changes
• Test changes safely on a private development version of your site, merges changes, then deploy the application live
• Saving, modifying, deleting, and retrieving data
• See real-time updates on what collaborators are modifying live and provide feedback by marking up the app with notes, tasks, and comments for the developer team to view
• Connecting to any kind of external services that expose an API (like payments, sources of data, authentication providers, etc.)
• Building responsive applications that adjust to the width of the screen
• Track which parts of the app are the most used with powerful dashboards, and connect with popular analytics and customer management services such as Mixpanel, Google Analytics, or Segment

General Steps to Build a Web Application

1. Establish the visual structure: The visual structure will set of pages and core elements you need your users to interact with like inputs and buttons. It is helpful to draft the visual structure on paper or a wireframing tool.
2. Define application workflows. Workflows are events that trigger a series of actions. Draft these out along with your visual structure to indicate events that will occur when actions on elements are performed.
3. Define a basic data structure: The data structure of the application will allow the app to run and let the users create, read, update, and delete data in a way that is helpful to them.
4. Gain access to external services: Install plugins and APIs to add functionality to the application, if necessary. In order to determine which services you need, think about how many pages your app needs, how users navigate between pages and under which circumstances, and what kind of data your app will store.
5. Iterate as you go: Building an application is an iterative process. Add features and modify the application as it grows and as you refine the product.

How to Build a Workflow in Bubble.io

1. Navigate to the workflow tab in the Bubble application editor
2. Pick and create the event that will trigger the new workflow (like a button being clicked)
3. Once the event is created, view the workflow panel and pick the different actions one-by-one
4. For each action, define fields necessary for execution
5. If you need to insert an action before another, click on the arrow in the workflow panel to reveal the action menu to add an action before the current one

How to Install Plugins in Bubble.io

1. Navigate to the plugins tab in the Bubble application editor
2. Find the Add Plugins button on the top right of the page
3. Search for your desired plug in and sort by rating, usage, or submission date if desired
4. Install the plugin and click DONE to view the newly installed plugin in the plugins tab
5. Configure your plugin, if necessary, by entering some keys to identify your app with them