Blog

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09 Nov 2023

A Manifesto for Progressive Software Development

I’ve been thinking a lot about how I develop projects and what makes my projects uniquely mine. As of November 2023, I have four sites that I am actively working on: Binary Moon, Brush Ninja, Ninja Puzzles, and WPBriefs. Despite...
28 Oct 2023

Optimizing Code With ChatGPT

As a solo developer, I often find myself seeking ways to optimize my code without the luxury of pair programming. That’s where ChatGPT comes in handy. In this blog post, I’ll share my experience of using ChatGPT to improve the...
24 Oct 2023

Boring Technology is Beautiful

I recently made ElementalCSS, my CSS framework/library, public. I created a website and added it to a Github repository. It was an exciting step for me as a developer, and I was thrilled to see people taking an interest in...
21 Oct 2023

Creating Jekyll Plugins (and modern image formats)

When I first started in web design (in the late 90’s), there was a lot of emphasis on learning about file formats, file naming conventions, and other technical aspects that don’t seem to be talked about these days. It’s easy...
05 Oct 2023

Polishing and releasing my Reef.js game

Last week, I took on the challenge of creating a country flags game for Brush Ninja using Reef.js. It was an interesting project, and I shared my process in the blog post. Today, I am pleased to announce that the...
28 Sep 2023

Using Reef.js to Make a Country Flag Game

When I build things for the web, I prefer using vanilla JavaScript as much as possible. However, for more complex projects, I also like to use Reef.js. The Brush Ninja animated gif maker is built with Reef.js, as are the...
27 Sep 2023

Typing Practice: Introducing Typing Ninja

As a parent, I’m always on the lookout for fun and educational tools to help my 7-year-old son improve his skills. One of his current obsessions is computers, so I decided to create something specifically tailored to his interests -...
20 Sep 2023

Celebrating 100 Episodes of WPBriefs

I was updating WPBriefs the other day and noticed something exciting - the most recent episode happened to be the 100th! It’s amazing to think how far this podcast has come since its humble beginnings. As I write this, we’re...
15 Sep 2023

Building a Control Panel for my Websites

I run a whole stack of websites, and as the number keeps growing, I was finding it harder to manage them all; so I decided to make a central control panel to manage them all efficiently. In this blog post,...
07 Sep 2023

Welcome to the Festinger Vault Community

Today I received an unsolicited email from a website called FestingerVault. They had created a WordPress account on their website using my email address, even though I had never heard of them before.But it didn’t stop there. Shortly after that,...
02 Sep 2023

Keeping Web Dev Simple

As I have gotten older, I have realized that caring less about what people think has brought me a great sense of freedom. In the past, I used to follow all the latest trends in tech, constantly trying to keep...
15 Aug 2023

Getting Back in the Blogging Groove

The other day, I mentioned that I am using AI to help with my blogging. But it’s not what you might think. The AI isn’t writing the posts in their entirety. I still want the content to reflect my own...
12 Aug 2023

Learning to Enjoy Building for the Web (Again)

A few years ago, I fell out of love with building for the web. I still did it but it felt like a constant struggle to keep up with the ever-evolving technologies and complex frameworks. I always felt behind, and...
30 Jul 2023

Cracking the Code: Creating NinjaPuzzles

Ever since becoming a Dad, I have enjoyed creating paper-based games and puzzles for my son. I began with mazes, starting with hand-drawn ones and later moving on to computer-generated ones. As he got older, he became interested in Sudokus,...
17 Jul 2023

A Lifetime of Zelda Gaming

One of the first video games I ever finished was the Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. It wasn’t even my game; it belonged to a friend - and I borrowed their Game Boy too. But despite that, I fell in...
10 Jul 2023

Firefox Extensions I Can't Live Without v2

Back in 2007, I wrote a blog post about my favorite Firefox extensions that I used all the time. However, over the years, my browsing habits changed, and I eventually switched to Chrome. But now, I’m back to using Firefox...
07 Jul 2023

The Myth of the Permalink

When I started using WordPress, I embraced the idea of permalinks. They appeared to be a reliable way to create long-lasting links. I believed that these permanent links would provide eternal access to all my pages.However, not everyone shares my...
27 Jun 2023

The Quest for a 'Simple' Smartwatch

My trusty old smartwatch recently stopped working. It was a Garmin Vivomove HR, a minimal hybrid watch with regular watch hands and a tiny hidden screen that showed notifications and messages. It served me well for quite some time but...
21 Jun 2023

Removing Google fonts

Have you ever stopped to think about the impact of the fonts you use on your website? Well, a few years ago, I did. And that’s when I decided to bid farewell to Google Fonts.As someone who loves creating interesting...
19 Jun 2023

Modern Art Direction: Making Your Website Stand Out

I love art directed websites. There’s something about the way people use beautiful design to make engaging content that always draws me in. But, let’s be honest, art directing your own site is a lot of work. The thought of...
15 Jun 2023

How I Use AI to Streamline My Programming Process

As a programmer, I am always on the lookout for ways to improve my workflow. In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has become an increasingly popular tool in the tech world, and I have found myself using it more and...

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