Actually, I have been writing a blog since 2009. But finally, I decided to archive my old stuff and start refactoring the blog system and its content.
Why do I refactor and archive old stuff?
Simple. I want to separate old articles that seem very personal from work-related articles. Besides that, I also want to make a blog system that simpler and more efficient.
What’s the problem with the old system?
Previously, I relied on WordPress to power my entire website ecosystem. More and more, the system feels overkill for my need, which is just writing a blog. A bigger system will undoubtedly consume more resources. Even more related to phpMyAdmin that uses a large number of memory resources.
I already use DigitalOcean as hosting. 10GB capacity with 1GB memory is sufficient initially. I don’t know what is wrong and why, but recently getting into /wp-admin takes a long time. Also, it suddenly disconnects when the web is not fully loaded. Logging in to SSH via the terminal also takes a long time. The operating system I use has not been upgraded since 6 years ago; Ubuntu 14. Maybe it is also one of the factors that are causing my VPS getting slow down.
But anyway, whatever it is. All I need to do is probably just play a little more. I prefer to set up an independent server instead of using shared hosting. Thus, both need more effort to explore, and I choose to use new technology to try a new experience.
Then what is the new architecture?
Instead of using WordPress, I finally chose to build a new architecture using Gatsby based on React. I know it doesn’t sound effortless, especially if you build it from scratch. Luckily there are tons of available starters out there. Make it easier to modify as needed.
Currently, there is a collaboration between Gatsby as Front-end and WordPress as CMS. It could be a good idea for some people. But what I want to do for now is try to explore how far Gatsby can do something. Apart from WordPress, Gatsby can also integrate with other CMS such as Contentful, Prismic, and Ghost.
For now, this post is written using Markdown and converted to HTML by Gatsby. I know this is a bit complicated because you have to write in a code editor, commit and push it to Github to get published. But in the future, I might use one of the CMS that I mentioned above as content management.
But in the future, I might use one of the CMS that I mentioned above as content management.
Who does not like freebies?
I love it because Github + Netlify is a super cool combination. GitHub can be a version control as well as a database. Netlify can be the god that makes this website alive.
Yup, I’m still trying to explore this new one. And it feels very excited because the greens on Github can be filled again.
How about content?
Something new I’m starting for 2022 - every week or two, I write about what I’ve been working on, problems I’ve solved, and things I’m still trying to figure out.
Mostly it will be related to work as a Product Designer. Some others may be related to life experiences that you might learn from.
So, wait for the next post, and happy new year!