The Beauty of Static Sites for Blogging
What is a Static Website?
A pre-built website that directly delivers to the user when accessed, therefore:
- Fast: No one likes to wait, staring at a blank website.
- Secure: Simpler and has less attack surface for hackers.
Noted: Static doesn’t mean no user interaction is possible. You can still have comment sections, forms, or even interactive elements using JavaScript, but the core HTML structure is pre-built.
How does Jekyll make it simple?
- Use Markdown, there is no need to go through the messy HTML/CSS/JavaScript file.
- Use the community-support themes that suit your taste.
- Push it live on GitHub Pages for free!
Overall Steps
It is essentially just some folder with some files:
- Config files for some basic stuff
- Content files in Markdown
- Template files for the looks of the site
Jekyll will build the website from these source files.
How do you deploy to GitHub Pages?
We don’t have to take care of any server-side stuff, GitHub directly hosts all the final HTML, CSS, etc. It’s all done in two steps:
- Create a GitHub repository.
- Push the files to the repository.
- Use GitHub Actions to automate the process.
How and why should we blog?
It’s an authentic way to get connected with people with the same interests. We should make it a simple, non-tech-savvy place for sharing the thinking process and ideas. Remember the tech stuffs are just tools.
We are all experts in our experiences, through the writing process, we organize our thoughts into something that humanely resonates with others. Sharing what you experienced, the a-ha moments, not pretending to be some guru. Through this reflection, we often learn a lot for ourselves too.
Resources
- Tania Rascia Article. Utilizing Jekyll with Sass and GitHub Pages.
- Andrej Karpathy Article. Showing Jekyll’s advantages over WordPress.
- Rachel Thomas Article. Showing how everyone has something to share, don’t keep those in your head.
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