

Firebase Adds Zapier Integration: Real-Time, Ability To Connect Multiple Apps - WadeF
http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/27/firebase-adds-zapier-integration-pairing-real-time-infrastructure-with-the-ability-to-connect-multiple-apps/

======
bryanh
Happy to answer any questions about this, it is particularly cool because you
really can run a SaaS service with "no servers" and still get to use your pick
of providers (Sendgrid, Mailchimp, Twilio, etc.). It seems like a lot of fun,
especially paired with Angular.js.

~~~
vertr07
Is it a good idea to build things without middleware?

~~~
bryanh
I think it is a question of efficiency, right? If some external middleware can
provide more value in some columns than it offsets in other columns, it is
usually a good bet. We're all just raising the bar for abstraction: first it
was higher level languages, then it was libraries, then it was frameworks, and
now we're talking about middleware (I might be missing a handful of steps in
there).

Sometimes middleware _isn 't_ the answer, but sometimes it speeds things up so
much that it is rather "cut off your nose to spite your face" to ignore it.
The argument certainly doesn't apply only to middleware, of course. The same
for the counter-arguments. So...

> Is it a good idea to build things without middleware?

Yes, and no. It depends. :-)

------
netforay
As a person who have replicated Zapier kind of integration into our
development tool, I don't find this news anything bug a paid advertisement.
Anything with REST API can be integrated with Zapier, so Firebase can be
integrated too. Looks silly to me.

~~~
mikeknoop
[https://zapier.com/blog/you-are-exception-rule/](https://zapier.com/blog/you-
are-exception-rule/)

~~~
netforay
Well, I am not saying people wont pay. I am saying making big post in TC every
time some one adds an another API to Zapier is silly. Zapier is good idea, and
I like the way they implemented.

~~~
bryanh
We thought this one was particularly novel, so I disagree (though as a Zapier
co-founder I am a bit biased!). We rarely submit API additions to HN unless it
seems particularly suited for hackers, others in the community might though...

