I am going into the new year by refreshing the working stack and a new website. I will address and solve some topics that have bothered me since web development invented the LAMP stack.

I will keep all the functionalities of the modern blog website as a tool for sharing information and expressing myself without following most of the known patterns and components a blog usually has.

## different approach to website
I am bored with the standard website structure, menus, contact pages, etc. There needs to be an easier way to present the info the visitor comes for.

## website components
I will remove standard components like the contact form, comments, search, etc. Instead, give the content and the organic feeling of content flow without presenting the page's structure.

## website views/page templates
Approaching the whole website as a simple gallery with all the available articles being there as you land on the website. To the experience of zooming the image / viewing the article, you want to read.
One and a half of a template is required for everything the website needs. Categories, series index, etc., can all be presented in this gallery and zoomed image view.

## going static
I've been playing with the idea of having a fully static application or website with no moving parts for some time now. The idea feels light and secure, and it gives me peace.
Putting the moving parts on the side of a browser and the users' services (like google drive for storage) is also a proper approach for the maintainability of the solution.

## maintenance
With lots of "hello world" projects hanging around, from a todo app to the chat socket server, there is always this nagging feeling when things will break one way or the other. The same goes for the website, even if we only talk about the website.

## security
Upgrading packages in all the projects take a lot of time.

## services
Dependency on the services like databases brings its own risk of maintaining them and keeping them up all the time.

## storage
There is always a chance some unwanted files end up there, or things need to sync correctly.

## frameworks
From WordPress to Laravel, lots of overhead is there to run them properly through time.

## scaling
Scaling the application servers horizontally is a pain. Shared database and storage the old way is a challenge I want to avoid.

## backups
I need some automation to go away from the Schrödinger backups.

## servers
The risk of upgrading them with all the projects is a pain I don't want anymore.

## conclusion
Achieving all the goals will be a considerable challenge, but it is time to finally make it a reality and put the idea I've had for years out of my memory and make room for some new ones.

Till next time, stay sexy and hydrated.


Going stateless

# time to learn something new
I got sick of my overhead with the current workflow, local environment, hosting, servers, deployment services, server maintenance, multiple instances, and separating more robust servers from temporary ones. Etc.

## disclaimer
Most of my projects are just that and nothing else. So it's the playground to get the production experiences I can use at my primary job, upgrade my CV, and prepare for the next gig.
Even though we talk about personal projects, I am highly bothered that I can not simply jump on the idea I have at the moment but am pulled back by the simplest things like local environments, domains, hosting, build flows, testing, or otherwise temporary domains, certificates.
Other inspirations come from my primary job circumstances, where things are always exciting.

## unsubscribe from current SaaS
I do not have many subscriptions to services, but at the end of the month, I could pay for a couple of streaming services with that money. So for them to just be there, that is too much.
I want a full self-hosted or managed environment where I can spawn a new socket server or five, a custom docker registry, a couple of CI/CD workers, etc. And if / when things become resource-consuming, I can scale just hardware without paying the upgraded subscription.

## quick option to switch servers
Whenever I set a new project and assign the server I want the project to run on, it soon becomes an issue when the resources are needed somewhere else; I am removing the server or simply upgrading to a better one or with another provider.

## no manual scaling overhead
Related to switching servers, making things scale big or small in a short time is a huge burden and an overhead I want to make as simple as possible.

## single hosting dashboard
Related to SaaS + multiple servers, multiple clients, ..., things soon become a bureaucracy what is where. I want to have it all in one place.

## simple management of application
Encapsulate the application for real, try things out, and don't worry about other things you also host. For example, adding one should be a matter of a couple of lines, not 15 screens and eight wizards.

## zero downtime for the applications
In the old world, we uploaded the new files of the application and hoped for the best. Usually, turning the maintenance page on or trying some symlink magic to achieve zero downtimes. Unfortunately, production rollbacks are still a mess and a full-blown risk.
There must be a better world somewhere today.

## multiple environments for features testing and previews
Having a test environment is already a privilege not all developers have. Pre-production and staging are almost like spam mail from a "prince that wants to give you money." What about a situation where the product is enormous, and each feature testing needs its environment? Or when you start developing on some huge refactor or new core functionality like replacing the whole internal system for events, sockets, etc.? What if a client also wants to have its sandbox/demo to play? Etc.

# the plan
Let's jump into the topic and see how far I can get before admitting all the mistakes I have made in the name of "Why should I check the documentation that takes 15 minutes if I can do that on my own in 5 hours."

Till next time, stay sexy and hydrated.



learning