New Blog

In which I explain this new blog thing and how it works.

I have done what it seems like every web developer does at one point or another: I wrote a blog system. Mine is a bit different, though. Since I am primarily a front-end developer (well, I enjoy front-end more, anyway), I didn鈥檛 want to create a blog system using any back-end framework.

So I made it so small and simple, that I don鈥檛 need any fancy back-end. If it can host some static files, it can host my blog.

The basic idea is that Angular and ngRoute handle the heavy lifting, a JSON file on the server handles the post listing, and I write posts in raw HTML (or Markdown then convert to HTML). Bootstrap handles the layout and styles.

Drawbacks

I fully acknowledge that this is not a perfect system.

First, there is no paging in the list view. For now, that鈥檚 OK since I don鈥檛 have many posts, but I鈥檓 not sure what the performance would look like with lots of posts. At least I鈥檒l have some time before I run into that. Second, the list view, with the fancy columns, looks kind of crappy with very few posts. That is pretty easy to solve, though, as I just need to write some. I have a few in mind, so that problem should go away soon enough.

Also, I鈥檓 not sure how I鈥檓 going to make an RSS feed. That鈥檒l come later.

Why Angular? Why Bootstrap?

First, let鈥檚 address the Angular thing. It鈥檚 a bit heavy for what I鈥檓 using, and I鈥檓 not even coming close to using all of its features. My response? Meh. I like Angular, it鈥檚 not that heavy and I鈥檓 using their CDN. I鈥檓 also not using Angular 2, but that鈥檚 because I haven鈥檛 really gotten around to learning it. Maybe I鈥檒l convert the blog to using it when it gets released.

Now, Bootstrap. I said I鈥檓 a front-end developer, yet I鈥檓 using a framework? And I鈥檓 not even styling it myself? Yes and yes. For now. I鈥檒l probably fiddle with the styles of this blog forever, so don鈥檛 expect Bootstrap to stay around forever.

Conclusion

I built a blog. It鈥檚 simple, it鈥檚 not perfect, it鈥檚 rough in some places, but it鈥檚 also a start. It can be improved, and I鈥檒l probably improve it as I go.

Update: Hexo

I鈥檝e given up on this idea and am trying something new.