The blog of dlaa.me

Posts from June 2019

Good, cheap, fast: you only get one and you don't get to pick [CoLR, the Camera of Last Resort]

One way I learn about new technologies is by using them. Sometimes I have a compelling scenario that yearns for a creative solution. Other times I don't. This was one of those times... So I created what's probably the worst camera app ever as a way of experimenting with four new (to me) technologies.

Excerpting from the README:

  • CSS Grid Layout - A modern layout system based on grid cells with the great working reference A Complete Guide to Grid
  • MediaDevices.getUserMedia() API - The part of the WebRTC Media Streams API that allows websites to access the device camera for video and image capture
    • Verdict: A somewhat cumbersome API that's nonetheless quite powerful
  • Preact - Exactly what it says on the box, a "Fast 3kB alternative to React with the same modern API"
    • Verdict: Works like a charm, easy for someone with React.js experience
  • Dexie.js - More truth in advertising, a "Minimalistic Wrapper for IndexedDB", where IndexedDB is "a JavaScript-based object-oriented database" that runs in the browser
    • Verdict: Easy to use, even for someone with no prior IndexedDB experience

If you want to learn more, please visit the CoLR project on GitHub. There, you'll find complete source code, instructions, links to resources, and some FAQ's.

If you just want to see how bad a camera app can be (and your device has a camera and your browser supports ECMAScript 2015), please open the CoLR web app in your browser.