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1. xianc78@gameliberty.club's status on Thursday, 28-Nov-2024 11:11:56 JST xianc78

   I'm starting to think that the whole "static-only website" meme from the early 2010s along with the normalization of static-site generators like Jekyll were a psyop to get websites dependent on big tech, such as using Disqus for comments, Google Analytics instead of hit counters, or Google Site Search for search functionality.

   There is nothing wrong with static-sites or static-site generators, but there is a case to be made for server-side scripting, even on personal websites.

   • Gabe (gabriel@mk.gabe.rocks)'s status on Thursday, 28-Nov-2024 11:23:04 JST Gabe

     in reply to

     @xianc78@gameliberty.club
     I've thought about that.
     Static has some real advantages but it wouldn't nice to have the best of both worlds

     xianc78 likes this.
   • xianc78@gameliberty.club's status on Thursday, 28-Nov-2024 11:33:46 JST xianc78

     in reply to

     • matthew - retroedge.tech

     @matthew
     >However, the concept of a website being a program instead of just a collection of documents is really interesting and I would like to eventually do more with that.

     If you are talking about webapps that replace desktop programs, don't. I think there is a case for the web being more than a remote document retrieval tool, but only in a limited sense. Shopping sites, social media sites Internet forums, guestbooks, wikis, etc have their place, but we don't need any more examples of "photoshop in the browser".

     I've been thinking of this idea for years. It's a network protocol where the client is simply a JIT compiler and the server serves source code for games and other software. Kind of like Adobe Flash, except that it doesn't use the web browser and the source code for software is always available (not counting obfuscation).

   • matthew - retroedge.tech (matthew@social.retroedge.tech)'s status on Thursday, 28-Nov-2024 11:33:47 JST matthew - retroedge.tech

     in reply to
     > there is a case to be made for server-side scripting, even on personal websites
     
     I agree.
     
     Have used static site generators, such as Hugo, and mostly been a good experience.
     
     However, the concept of a website being a program instead of just a collection of documents is really interesting and I would like to eventually do more with that.
     
     #webdev
   • xianc78@gameliberty.club's status on Thursday, 28-Nov-2024 11:51:59 JST xianc78

     in reply to

     • Gabe

     @gabriel There are a lot of features that personal websites can have that can only be done through server-side scripting. Hit counters give you basic analytics without compromising readers' privacy. And why not many blogs have comment sections anymore, I think having a simple guestbook or a shoutbox on a single page allows interactivity with your audience.