The Evolution of My Website: From Rails to Jekyll

The Beginning: A Custom Ruby on Rails Application

It’s been quite the journey for my personal website. When I started over five years ago, I built it using a custom Ruby on Rails application. At that time, my professional life revolved heavily around Rails development. The website served as a playground for my coding experiments as much as a showcase of my work. However, as is often the case with personal projects, my own site slowly became the least of my priorities. Updates became sporadic, limited to adding new articles while the underlying technology lagged behind.

Transitioning to WordPress

As my career evolved, so did my interests and skills. I found myself diving deeper into web design and exploring new platforms and programming languages. This phase of exploration led me to transition my site to a WordPress blog. The switch was driven by the need for a more manageable content system, which allowed me to focus more on creating content and less on maintenance. WordPress served its purpose well, providing a flexible and user-friendly platform that supported my growing needs at the time.

Today: Embracing Jekyll and Static Sites

Now, in the latest chapter of my website’s evolution, I have moved to a static site using Jekyll. This shift might seem like a step back in terms of complexity compared to dynamic systems like WordPress, but it represents a strategic choice reflecting the latest trends in web development.

Why Jekyll?

Jekyll offers several compelling advantages that align perfectly with my current needs and goals:

• Speed: Static sites are inherently faster, as they consist of simple HTML files served directly to the user, eliminating the need for database queries or complex server-side processing.
• Free Hosting on GitHub: Leveraging GitHub Pages not only reduces hosting costs but also simplifies the deployment process. Every git push updates the site, seamlessly integrating my workflow.
• Minimal Maintenance: Without a database or heavy backend, the maintenance requirements are significantly lower. This means less time fixing issues and more time focusing on content.
• Security: Static sites are less vulnerable to common security threats that affect dynamic websites, such as SQL injections and XSS attacks.

Looking Forward

The move to Jekyll represents not just a technological upgrade, but a recommitment to sharing my knowledge and experiences more efficiently. The simplicity and efficiency of Jekyll allow me to publish content quickly and focus on quality rather than dealing with the overhead of a more complex system.

As web technologies continue to evolve, so will my site. This ongoing evolution is not just about keeping up with trends but about choosing the right tools that serve the core purpose of my online presence. Stay tuned for more updates and insights as I continue this journey of growth and learning.