Developers know that both the user interface and the backend functionality are essential before your application goes to production. As dev matters continue to evolve, developed platforms, in general, have to handle a lot of information.
It makes sense for developers to focus more on functionality than on interface presentation. Why? When it comes to the view, they will depend on the UI toolkit to determine the user experience.
Competent developers don't want to juggle between data flow matters and fixing the social media icons on the homepage. So, instead of building visual elements, they rely on prebuilt components in kits to reduce their cognitive load while coding.
But why?
Reasons Why Smart Developers Don’t Want to Build UI from Scratch
Evading the Black Canvas Paralysis
This is a point that reminds us of a comment we read in a dev forum:
“Backend developers sometimes behave like newbies in an art class. It’s like they just got in and in the next 30 minutes, they are supposed to deliver ‘a beautiful drawing.’”
Those in the development circles cannot laugh at such a matter. We know that both frontend and backend work are essential, and neither is easier. For the backend, if it's easier for you to create the data models and perform migrations successfully, then your brain is set for it.
The problem arises when the same brain has to handle both the hero section and the cards below it. That’s when every thought goes silent, since you are not wired to think subjectively.
It’s funny when you can create a relational data structure without struggling, but you can't deal with HTML, CSS, and some JavaScript. On the other hand, web and app development require more effort these days, hence the need for specialization.
Developers in our era now understand that:
Coming up with these web platforms is not about knowing everything. It's knowing what not to do or what not to touch.
In the ‘not-to-do’ part, working on UI from scratch is one of the items on the list.
It's the industry's changes that are driving this shift, along with what people expect and the workflow. So, instead of thinking about that button, icon, and grid over and over again, developers are turning to toolkits like TimelyUI to ease the tedious design task.
The Mindset Is Already Logical
Do developers hate dealing with CSS? That could be the case, since their brains are wired to think logically rather than to rely on structural approaches. When dealing with model, control, and function matters, you know:
- How to fetch data from the forms
- What does that data mean for the next part
- What should run if X happens
- How to throw an exception when Y occurs
The mindset of the logical developer always seems to follow the cause-and-effect chain. Now, compare that to a subjective brain dealing with structures:
- That menu appears too wide.
- That layout still needs polishing.
- Why does this space feel off?
- What color should the footer section be? What about the links in it?
To someone dealing with a vast application, figuring out how things should work is complete chaos. If you want to know how tiring it is for developers to build UIs, join any Reddit or Stack Overflow debate about UI design.
The complex part, which comprises data and functionality, never seems to bother more than the problems UIs present. At times, CSS work can feel like sorcery, since ideas don’t flow logically here.
UI toolkits came to save chaotic development phases by providing a bridge that:
- Allows the usage of a component instead of making it
- Allows calling tags instead of working on styles
- Allows combining elements to form a layout instead of designing it first
When the perfect UI kit is in place, developers don't need to pretend to design. They fetch the components, customize them, and add the right functionality.
It's Expensive to Master Algorithms, Functionality, and Design
Any developer can attest to the following:
"You spend months or years mastering algorithms and architecture, and then get bogged down by a button problem that takes half a day to fix.”
It happens every time, not because it's hard to do, but because design tasks are always tedious. That’s why developers find it annoying. Be warned – it’s not the best mood to be in when you have bespoke projects to deal with, and they all have a deadline.
If you are working on an application, you are also earning big time. Now, imagine that you just charged a company $70 per hour to work on their code, and then the following happens:
- You take 40 minutes to get the right padding
- Another 25 minutes fixing a flex layout
- An hour of working on mobile responsiveness
- Another hour of redesigning cards and including the right icons and information
By the time you are done, about $210 has been spent on tasks that maybe should have been left to an intern. The problem is not the work; it's not having TimelyUI and other supporting tools to support the design innovation.
If you can automate tasks such as deployment and routing, for example, there is nothing wrong with using a UI kit for the same. Everything you need, from navigation to footer elements, is present.
The innovative developers who use such UI collections also recognize that someone else spent hundreds of hours making that button and table right. So, why not appreciate their effort by buying or subscribing to the kits' offers?
It’s Easier to Assemble Than Manufacture
Modern developers, have been discussing this point for months, if not years. It’s starts from people recognizing that UI design is not easy just like other dev dockets. The argument is that it's easier to assemble bricks into castles than to make bricks first.
UI toolkits are like a site full of ready-made bricks.
Just a decade ago, people used to customize UIs from scratch, and the limits were only in imagination. Now, we have toolkits with all the right pieces for our applications. So, why not assemble what’s available already?
When creating the UI elements from scratch, you have to:
- Write down the markup part (HTML)
- Create custom CSS, use Bootstrap, or involve Tailwind utility classes
- Style everything manually as you perform initial testing
- Rebuilding every time you need a table or an input box
That’s the manufacturing work that developers don’t want to deal with anymore. When using a preferred UI toolkit, activities are reduced to:
- Dropping a prebuilt component in your IDE
- Customizing the component to match the colors and branding requirements
- Assembling everything to make the pages and interlinking
- Working on the data flow and how the components will function
In the ‘manufacturing’ part, it feels like real coders at work who will get tired in the next few hours. In ‘assembly’, it’s like following a well-detailed guide on how to assemble toy parts into a complete train model.
Assembling, in this case, is suitable for developers who need more time to:
- Predict outcomes
- Structure data and the flow
- Create working modules
- Know what to reuse in the application
So, instead of worrying about the aesthetics and fighting CSS, you focus on composition and orchestrating the components. That way, it’s easier to build and scale your application within given timeframes.
Gain Constraints That Save You from Errors
In Laravel-based development circles (and those in TypeScript, too), gurus and learners agree that constraints are good when you want to evade errors. That is why all typed languages are a favorite among those working on large applications. There is less time to deal with syntax, logic, and other potential errors for you.
Most of the frontend languages, like CSS and HTML, are usually untyped
, hence the lack of constraints. So, if you are designing UI elements from scratch, those good in it will tell you that you have ample room for:
- Having inconsistent spaces
- Wrong color choices
- Misaligning elements
- Conflicting design patterns
- And other visual chaos
When dealing with untyped languages, you have to be more than careful. At times, that caution makes developers feel insecure about working with UI designs.
UI Toolkits eliminate the possibility of errors that could bring your application down to subpar quality. When you have the best UI for your development tasks and production, initial designing errors related to:
- Spacing scales
- Border radiuses
- Typography
- Grids and layouts
…among others are already fixed.
In other words, every component you would like to use doesn’t allow you to go off the development rails. Why? Everything is approved for sizing, colors, and variations.
As you work on your system, there is no room for UI trials since the toolkit you have prevents it. That keeps your confidence levels optimal as you progress.
Using Kits is the Development Norm
Using UI kits doesn't mean someone doesn't want to do the hard work. It simply means that developers are focusing on the future. You can compare the emergence of kits to the replacement of some core languages by frameworks.
For example, through PHP, we now have Laravel. That shows the industry is focusing on speed and consistency in this data/information era. Developers are now expected to ship fast, clean, and reliable applications.
The best part is that the kits are available to make that and more possible.
Final Thoughts: Smart Developers Have a Different UI Approach
Next time you are struggling to figure out what to include in your frontend code, remember that developers have been there too. What now differentiates them from you is that they are using UI toolkits to speed up interface design.
How about leveraging what TimelyUI has to offer and seeing how your design days will become easier? You will no longer need to think too much about UI/UX.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Will it be considered cheating if I use a UI toolkit?
No, using a UI kit is not cheating; it's becoming efficient. Modern development requires speed and accuracy rather than mastering every line of code. By using one, you will prioritize shipping over development time.
2. Which is cheaper: hiring a frontend designer or using a UI kit?
Using a toolkit is way cheaper than hiring a professional frontend guru. A UI kit includes pre-made components that you fetch and customize to meet the system requirements. Furthermore, toolkits such as TimelyUI offer affordable rates that you can't match with hiring a professional UI designer.
3. What happens if the chosen UI kit does not have a component I need?
The beauty of using UI toolkits is that if you don't have a component, you can use the ones you do have to build whatever you need. While you are not spending time creating them, the creativity here lies in combining different parts to get what you need.