Design is communication.<p>I loved sketch and was a devout user for years.<p>But with Sketch, I can only communicate with a very small set of people. It required a plethora of other tools and services to share, get feedback, or insights on my work.<p>The tool is only as effective as the reach of its creation. If technology has shown us anything in this generation, it is that reach and collaboration are immensely more valuable than tools themselves.<p>I've watched our company move from Sketch to Figma. The crappy performance is a relatively small price to pay in exchange for inclusive design.<p>My hope is that eventually Figma will launch platform native apps for MacOS and Windows, because I have zero hope that Sketch is ever going to figure out that they've been driving on the road to irrelevance for the past several years.
One thing I think people aren't pointing out is how much Figma seems to have done [1] to make the web platform work for them in the way Sketch is describing the Mac App. It almost seems like a technical moat of sorts. Achieving the ridiculous snappiness Figma in browsers is certainly non-trivial.<p>[1] <a href="https://www.figma.com/blog/building-a-professional-design-tool-on-the-web/" rel="nofollow">https://www.figma.com/blog/building-a-professional-design-to...</a>
I respect them for sticking to this, but I think it's a mistake. It's clear users in general don't care about an app being pure Mac OS controls/SDKs/etc. and their claims about it being a truly superior UX are unfounded (having used both regularly, Figma disproves that heavily). With this, Sketch isn't available on Windows nor the web (until very recently it seems?).<p>I wouldn't die on that hill.
This will go well with the Daringfireball crowd but that’s about it.<p>I do like native apps and would prefer them all things being equal. But all things rarely are equal.<p>That’s why I use VSCode instead of Sublime. And Gmail instead of Apple Mail.<p>Instead of justifying why native apps are better they should really just explain why <i>Sketch</i> is better. None of the reasons they gave are compelling.
Figma is eating them brutally. I'm a designer and everyone I know (and their companies) are moving away from Sketch.
Figma understood that the breakthrough of this market is to create a platform, not a tool. Building a native app is not going to help you win this market. That's for sure.
Good for them staying native and not getting caught in a least-common denominator Electron hell.<p>People uses Macs because they want to use Macs and software that takes advantage of the reliability and consistency of that ecosystem.
I find at least zooming in/out large project files to be much faster in Figma. Lack of good offline workflow sucks but the overall features and cross-compatibility means nearly everyone is moving to Figma.<p>Sketch isn’t bad software at all, but they are really losing out to the network effects of Figma. Design software isn’t like IDEs where everyone in an organisation can use their favourite one - orgs choose design tooling that is shared across the whole design team, and often used by the FE devs too to some degree.<p>I feel a little sorry for Sketch but if they are not going cross-platform, at this point the only thing Sketch can do to remain at least a little bit relevant is to develop features Figma doesn’t have, maybe some animation tools and scripting for more interactive prototypes, and find a niche in that.
"And thank you, Apple, for giving us a place to call home."<p>The underlying rendering tech is based on Apple frameworks so they are not "home". They are stuck. What a nice way of saying it.<p>Targetting a single platform and taking advantage of its features is totally fine for a small developer or niche app. It's a lot easier to get going, maintenance costs are lower.<p>However for a big app like Sketch cutting corners like that becomes a liability in the long term. Porting to another platform would mean rewriting the rendering layer or reimplementing the system frameworks to keep their designs work 1:1. It's now a huge strategic disadvantage.
What Sketch is doing in the post is marketing their constraint as their strength.<p>Some reasons on why Sketch is not a good design tool:<p>1. Exclusion: Sketch was never cross-platform. There by excluding people. Design is all about inclusion. There have been numerous requests to make sketch available on windows.
2. Apple only: Sketch was made to design stuff for Apple Ecosystem and that mostly remains that way.
3. Cost: Sketch exlcudes people to design basis cost. People measure the cost of sketch as USD 99. However, the real cost is cost of owning a Mac and then owning a Sketch license. Owning a Windows/Linux machine with Figma / Xd is way cheaper and makes the tools of trade accesible to the masses.<p>As i contrast these with Figma Or XD or even InvisionStudio, the tools of trade are far more accesible to the masses.<p>A feature based comparison is not helpful as Sketch can catchup to Figma (is already doing so with Sketch Cloud).<p>A designers take.
Colleagues I work with swear by Figma, but five minutes after giving it yet another try for the N-th time I find myself needing to charge my suddenly depleted battery (even using Safari) and wanting to cut my wrists. Janky doesn’t even come close to describing the user experience of Figma, and I’m on a 2019 16” MBP. In my opinion, Figma really is that bad. On the flip side, Sketch Cloud sucks rocks so we share our sketch assets via git. I even pay for my own Sketch license so I can use it at work; for the quality and productivity, it’s a steal.
By now, I'd treat Apple-exclusive app developers for Stockholm syndrome.<p>I used to build a Mac-only native app for real-time audio processing, which was great for battery life, snappy performance and had no latency. But the work that Apple pushed on me just to keep things running okay-ish across OS releases was too much to bear compared with the meager revenue of only serving 10% of the addressable market.<p>By now, my app is using a cross-platform C++ framework so that I can compile the same code for Windows, Linux and Mac. Windows and surprisingly Linux pay for development of new features, while Mac is more of a prestigious afterthought. Needless to say, I'm not using native Apple frameworks anymore and battery life on OS X has suffered. But finally, the same C++ code will compile nicely across OS X versions, the app is profitable, and I'm not stressed by every WWDC anymore.<p>And then when Epic showed me what I had feared all along - namely that Apple is happy to sacrifice their loyal developers in the name of profits - I was just glad that I had taken the jump off Apple-specific development tools early enough.
I believe users don't actually care about the Native only features, and rather they care more about producing great designs, through a delightful process, in effective collaboration with their teammates. As opposed to focusing on how Sketch tackles these bigger picture user goals, they talk about their love for Native apps, with contrived examples: what percentage of users actually care about using the OSX dictionary while working? They took out a bunch of space to show a user using the dictionary for the word "reading" - a use case that likely doesn't resonate with 99.9% of their users.<p>A common ego-driven thinking mistake I catch myself making: I subconsciously push myself to believe a false narrative that supports my previous decisions so that I don’t appear stupid in front of my peers and so that I don’t throw away previous work. I think Sketch is making this mistake.<p>It's tough. When you've raised money and have so much external pressures to succeed in the way you said you would when you raised money - it's tough to own mistakes and honestly, objectively analyze your work.<p>I sincerely hope Sketch does well in the coming years, their work has benefitted me tremendously, but I feel their focus is off at the moment.
I wouldn't be proud to keep developing on Apple's platforms considering they're an utter pain these days to continue to support as well as them being outwardly hostile.<p>I wouldn't bank my company's existence on a another company that could not care less if I existed. Much less would I praise and bend over backwards to promote someone else's products other than my own in my marketing materials like this.<p>What a bizarre corporate decision.
> For us, the ultimate benefit of being a native macOS app is that it puts the choice in your hands.<p>Except the choice of using another brand of computer.
Anyone at Sketch reading this, don't be discouraged by the naysayers here. Stick with cold hard evidence and you can't go wrong. Is Sketch faster than Figma? Does it alt-tab faster, due to not having to swap in the entire Chromium browser? Can you scroll through complex designs faster? Does any of this translate into user conversions or retention?
One thing I really appreciate about Sketch over Figma for my solo projects is that it’s offline-first. Call me old fashioned but I don’t want my designs or the app I use to design to be so strongly tethered to the web.
Obviously they’re feeling the heat from Figma which is browser-based.<p>I do absolutely agree that native apps are a much better experience. I prefer Paw over postman every time for this reason too.<p>However creating a Sketch plugin which downloads a simple JSON was an absolute nightmare.
I've used Sketch for years but haven't renewed my license which expired in August. I still like it to create some very quick mockups (less than an hour). But Figma is the go-to UI tool now, especially for teams, but even for a single designer like me. Their development pace is insane. They just released component variants: <a href="https://twitter.com/MaxBrunel/status/1320768394153570305" rel="nofollow">https://twitter.com/MaxBrunel/status/1320768394153570305</a><p>Weirdly enough, in terms of performance, the Figma Electron app feels slower to me than the Figma web app (in Chrome). Go figure. But it still feels just as quick as Sketch, so performance is not a criteria for choosing Sketch over Figma. I made the full switch only recently but it's a no-brainer. Plus, it's free.
I've been a Sketch user longer than most, think I started around V2 when Adobe discontinued Fireworks.<p>Until very recently I would have championed how critical it is for tools like this to be native apps but honestly Figma has proven that wrong, it just blows Sketch completely out of the water in terms of performance, stability and collaboration.<p>To make matters worse Apple just doesn't offer a machine powerful enough for the 3D part of my work, even if I spent $7000 with Apple I'd still get significantly better performance paying around $3000 for a PC build so Figma is a godsend working across all the platforms I use and all the platforms my coworkers use.<p>This pitch seems even more surreal as Apple moves away from MacOS, these technologies that the Sketch team are talking about being so important are clearly considered the past by Apple and technology like catalyst being the future. I honestly can't shake the feeling that a not insignificant part of Apple considers the future of the Mac as the place you go to run multiple iPad apps and because of that the technology Sketch is built with will eventually be discontinued within 10 years.<p>Not to mention, they've had 4 years since Figma's launch to know they need a collaboration feature shipped, it's been "Coming Soon" for years now. I actually presumed they were just doing a full webtech rewrite but judging from this it's just that writing those kind of features into a native app is a gigantic task.<p>Really a professional tool in 2020 that doesn't have Google Docs style collaboration is a broken tool, it's very difficult to work with remote workers without having presence within the documents.
I don't get it. Reading through their reasons to love native I kept thinking, "I don't use that feature".<p>Finder? A file browser exists in every OS and browsers support browsing file systems well. I have so many thousands of files at this point, using a file browser isn't an advantage to me.<p>Time Machine? I've never used it because my thousands of files have been stored in a cloud sync app for a decade and I don't think about backups anymore.<p>Keyboard shortcuts? Well, maybe I should do more of this, but I don't create many of my own. I prefer the command line, actually.<p>Drag toolbar items around? I'd rather learn their original locations so I don't have to customize everytime I install something.<p>I'll stop there. I actually enjoy some native apps but even those I typically wish they weren't native. What if I want to run them on my Chromebook for a bit? What if I decide I can't drop the money on a Mac anymore and go for Linux? What if I don't like how the ecosystem locks me in going forward? Today I love my Mac, but I'm not sure I'll still love it tomorrow. Web based and cross platform software gives me more choice.
It seems like “pride” should be reserved for things like acting ethically, being environmentally friendly, treating employees well, making a positive impact on the world.<p>The platform you chose to build on is more of a business decision. One that I’m guessing Sketch is increasingly trying to rationalize to themselves.<p>Being proud they build a native app isn’t going to help them compete with Figma.
I moved my company away from Sketch to Figma and one of the big differentiators was that folks who don't use macOS on our team can't use sketch, at all.
In general, I think it is a mistake to project technology choices as a user benefit.<p>Particularly when it comes to trying to rank against the modern web. Especially given the testimony of Figma users ITT, because they suggest cross platform availability as the true driving value.<p>One thing I’d point out is Sketch is acting all lovey about Apple’s awesome APIs right now, but they left the App Store with great bitterness a few years ago.<p>Those fees, as Apple has stated, go in part to paying for these APIs.<p>And by leaving the App Store Sketch also restricted user licensing as well.
Reminds me of Blackberry that decided to stick to keyboard and went bankrupt.<p>Users don’t care about native or not , they care only about innovation.
This is great, but I no longer feel that the macOS HIG represents usable design for anybody. Apple's native apps are confusing and inconsistent. XCode is perhaps the worst offender. (Is that because it's okay to ship sub-par experiences to developers? )<p>My opinion is that Google's UX is now best in class -- things like Google Docs that are just nearing perfection that everyone seems to have no trouble with. Youtube would be another example of a highly effective UI.<p>I do think native is quite overrated :)
As a native desktop app developer, I feel like on the contrary it's very important to insulate from most of the OS APIs as users have come to expect availability on whatever desktop platform they are using. The Discord app has great UX and UI, arguably better than most native app and is exactly the same across all desktop OSes. "Apple tried and tested frameworks", what does that even means. It's not like other OSes come with buggy APIs.
What a baffling stand. "Pride" in only serving the customer base with the expensive machines? I truly hope Figma eats your lunch. Say no to gate-keeping.
These two things are simultaneously true:<p>1. The experience of using a native app is substantially superior to web/electron.
2. Figma has done an amazing job of building features to support teams and organizations.<p>I used to use Sketch, and now I use Figma. Do I wish Figma had a native macOS app? Absolutely. Would it be better than the web/electron app? Definitely.<p>Native vs web isn't a <i>feature</i> differentiation - it's a matter of user experience (responsiveness), platform integration (filesystem, native controls, accessibility, iCloud), and delivery (App Store vs download). As a company, the choice boils down to: "Are you going to spend <i>more</i> resources supporting multiple platforms but delivering the best possible experience? Or are you going to spend <i>fewer</i> resources to ship an inferior experience faster?".<p>I do enjoy Figma, but it's worth calling out that they're compromising on user experience by going the Electron route. Yes, I know that maintaining a Swift version of Figma alongside the web version would be tough, but they're not an under-resourced team and I believe they could make it happen.
OT: But their 8bit graphics theme (which are really not 8-bit, I know...) is so much the wrong message for a product like Sketch that it was a net loss for me.<p>Graphics are important, and styles like that are great for games, but the message they give me is: "The fun doesn't come from the graphics"<p>Always be sure of the unconscious marketing
Any seasoned figma users out there that can comment on what it has that Adobe XD does not?<p>Adobe is is a creative powerhouse and has an army of devs and unlimited resources to steal the best features and workflow across all design apps from what I've seen since it first was referred to as project Comet.
Sketch keeps design in a silo. Figma is the tool of the future. Design is about problem solving, and designers need to involve non-designers to solve problems.
The majority of the benefits seem to be for developers, not for customers. Effectively-free features like tool bars, file dialogs, and right-click lookups sure are nice to not have spend development hours on. However, as a customer...how does that matter to me?
Platform exclusivity should be discouraged, not praised. If I can't use the software then their supposed benefits of being native don't do me much good.
A part of me wishes Sketch would say, Creativity needs focus, and collaboration eats into focus if not done properly. They need to push asynchronous collaboration, rather than live collaboration.<p>Collaborative spaces makes me think what would others think, this leading me to share my work once It is complete or with a caveat this is work in progress.<p>This is one reason why there is a market for "focused" writers.
Now no one call themselves macOS developer, iOS developer, or Windows developer, instead there are desktop developer, mobile developer or web developer. Reminds me of when iOS first came out and people were still experimenting the platform, there were some really awesome mobile games that's truly made for the iOS devices, like Cut the Rope, Fruit Ninja, I can tell they're making apps <i>for</i> the platform, instead of porting generic apps <i>to</i> the platform. As a game developer I'm constantly struggling with the thought of whether trying to go full cross-platform or focus on a single platform. Philosophically, aesthetically and technically focusing on one platform is a far superior choice, but it's so tempting to write one piece of software and able to deliver to all users..<p>Also poolside.fm is a recent one i noticed that has native clients on web, iOS and macOS that strongly demonstrated the power of being native.
Dear Sketch developers, I love your app but will not renew the license, not because Figma. We use Affinity at the office. No. Collaborative design is a trend and it will pass in a mess that will be a result of mediocrity and lack of character. My problem is that you cannot see the Writing on the wall ahead, Apple will bring you down, they do not care, they are service sellers. If you want your software to live long and serve your customers fairly, its time to invest in multi-platform development, and if you want market advantage make Linux your primary choice.
Also it was super easy to bypass the registration with a super simple hack on their old mac app. It’s been a few years but I remember something along the lines of having to use the menu bar to open a file while they were prompting me to pay. There was probably another step involved but I was able to read and write files forever without paying. Reminded me WinRar
As someone who primarily works with either backend development or web frontend, it's just SO refreshing to build a native Mac app - or in fact even an iOS app as it's very similar. It's hard to explain but the development toolchain, the libraries, language (Swift!), makes me feel a lot more enthusiastic than what I normally am.
macOS runs only on Apple Hardware. Perhaps things are different in countries where the laws are somewhat pro-consumer, but in poorer parts of the world, Apple is allowed to get away with operating pretty much like a criminal enterprise.<p>Here in India 100% of the Apple products that I have had the misfortune of owning, have been defective. I have purchased them from authorized resellers, and they have been original products. Recent examples: A pair of Airpods that I received as a gift lasted me about 6 months of occasional use before one side stopped charging. Apple Support says these are not covered by warranty. A Macbook Pro which I purchased a few years ago developed a tearing sound in both of its speakers and suffers from the infamous "staingate" issue on its screen. I also follow Louis Rossman on YouTube who routinely highlights the ways in which Apple scams its customers by overcharging for repairs and engaging in shoddy manufacturing. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly difficult for customers or third party repair shops to fix hardware issues due to the proprietary parts. Apple even invented its own screw which requires a special screwdriver set to open their devices. By comparison I have knock-off airpods and a Samsung and Lenovo laptop which work flawlessly despite being purchased much earlier.<p>Sketch is a fantastic piece of Software, but its true price is essentially ensuring that everyone on the design team is using Mac desktop and laptop hardware, which is overpriced compared to the market, and virtually impossible to repair and maintain on your own. If I invest in PC hardware I can reliably swap out a bad GPU or motherboard or PSU by ordering one off Amazon and having it ready to go the next day. With Apple I have to overpay for the hardware and overpay for the repair - often to the degree that it is almost the same price as new hardware. That is downright criminal.<p>Until this changes I don't see myself ever supporting the Apple ecosystem at my own expense.
I always prefer native to web and I love companies like Sketch and Panic who put native first. Take all my money!<p>Sketch is perfect for me as a solo developer, and I would rather not rely on anything that always requires an internet connection.<p>Thanks for sticking to native! Would be great if Sketch would return to the Mac App Store too.
Users can care less about the app being native or non-native. I just want it to work and not slow me down.<p>It's frustrating sometime when you switch machines and software you've purchased for a machine is not available across multiple operating systems.
Why does this website change my mouse pointer though? I have it set to a different color and bigger for a reason. Visiting this page makes it small and black. For what purpose?? Is this the design they are so proud of?
Not a sketch user but I like this. Not every piece of software has to be used by everybody. There are tens of millions of designer surely, making a program for a decent subset is still worthwhile.
This shit is annoying because it's Mac only but its an industry standard, so I have to buy a Mac just to run this software. I thought about writing alternatives multiple times.
Sketch trying to make up for their (now) mediocre application by trying to turn one of their cons - heavy platform lock in - into an advantage. Clever.
I hate sketch because of this. I don't use Mac, never will, and because of Apple's stubbornness about not running in a VM, there is no remote possibility of me ever being able to use sketch.<p>So when someone hands off a sketch, I usually have to pester them endlessly to decipher certain parts of it for me. It's their punishment for buying into platform lock-in.<p>Sketch is a cool app but it sucks and I hate it.