One of the big selling points of Salesforce.com is its flexibility. It’s very easy to make quick changes, move a field, change its properties, add a field, add objects, etc.

When you start using custom code in your Salesforce.com application you will lose this ability, especially when you create Visualforce pages. Visualforce is a custom user interface which is a replacement or addition to the standard Salesforce.com user interface. 

Of course you will be flexible in building the solution tailor made to your needs but the application management will become more of a hassle.

You will no longer be able to quickly add a field to a page without consulting one of your developers. Filtering a pick list by record type is not available when you use visual force and since this custom code runs in the cloud it is not available in mobile or offline clients, unless you use the Adobe Flash Builder for Force.com. 

Since the introduction of Force.com, Salesforce.com’s online development platform, the slogan and Sassy (see picture) actually contradict what Salesforce.com is preaching. No Software vs. Software in the cloud. A little brush up would do no harm here. 

So if it is not really needed try sticking with the standard. You can do a lot with the formula fields and field updates (workflow). If you want to go custom make sure you have a developer nearby and be aware that you will not only gain some, you will also lose some…