My history of web development goes back a little over ten years. In that time, I've really not built things as well as I'd have preferred. One thing that never changed is that I continued learning and trying new things. But maybe I didn't try enough new things, and held onto older things simply because "Hey, I built that." Sporkblog is a part of that, despite it being the only project I've really stuck with. I've been questioning whether I should continue work on Sporkblog or if I should move onto something that can teach me more.

Does a carpenter hold onto the first thing that he built? That's doubtful; it's probably built with nails that are too large, there are dents where he missed the nail with the hammer, it's wobbly, and it's uneven. It's a shoddy example of craftsmanship. While the carpenter appreciates where he came from, he also realizes that he built that object poorly and learned from it. A simple picture would be good enough to remind him of his first project.

When I think about that and how it applies to me, I wonder if it's time to scrap Sporkblog, but hold onto some screenshots of it so I can look back and remember the things I learned. Maybe write a post-mortem and really dive into the details. I know I'd love to see that sort of stuff from other projects. At any rate, I do think it's time for a change. There are a number of changes that I have in mind:

Architecture

This blog's content is generated solely by me. I originally set out to make a general tool with Sporkblog, to make it easy to use and collaborate. I can only assume it works as advertised, as I've never collaborated with it. The only itch I wanted to scratch was a straight-forward publishing tool that has a lean layout. I ended up spending the majority of development time on the administration tools; post managers, tag managers, site settings and storage, user authentication, and so on. While these things were fun to learn at first, implementing them can be a royal pain in the ass. They're the bread and butter of a CRUD application, however, so that sorta comes with the territory. In my use and management of a Sporkblog installation, I realized I don't really want a CRUD website of my own. Editing posts and tags and whatnot can be convenient over the Web, but personally I want something simpler: a static site generator.

Why a static site generator? For starters, they're more secure. No user account to worry about, no cookies, no backend (beyond the web server). That also means a lot of backend software doesn't need to be written. The existing infrastructure (FTP) is enough: connect, upload, profit! A site update can be automated, too, if you have something like rsync available. I use an FTP client every time I interact with my server. Switching to a static site generator allows me to update the blog's content at the same time I make layout changes or add media files, etc. It makes it more friendly to put into git, too. Long story short, a static site generator is exactly what I've been looking for.

One of the cons to this, however, is my appreciation for commenting facilities. I'm very picky with those, too. It needs to be easy, simple, allow anonymous commenting, and if possible some editing and deleting (for one's own comments, at least). Oh, and no registration or silly, warped CAPTCHAs. I'd prefer no Javascript, too, since it's just comments; refreshing the page to read more should be expected since HTTP is stateless. So I have two choices:

Option 1: Static Site Generator

Assuming I can find a decent generator, I won't have to write any real code: just a template and some CSS. That's a huge plus, because I can't stand PHP. That alone makes me want to jump at it. However, if I go in that direction, I lose comment facilities, and I may be limited in what I can do with the blog. It comes down to the generator. If I'm forced to, I may have to build one myself. I have a feeling there are lots of options out there, though, and I shouldn't have a problem.

What's more important is the lack of commenting. I can setup a contact form, which could make use of the simple anti-CAPTCHA system I wrote, and people could use that to send an e-mail my way. It's only one page's worth of programming, and I'd learn a bit about e-mail headers. It could be fun, and still give people the means to contact me. There are also other avenues of discussion, like Reddit, Fark, Hacker News, etc. that people could use to discuss my posts. Of course, that's all assuming my content's worth talking much about. :P

Option 2: Generated content, dynamic commenting

This option is a little more accomodating for readers. I value commenting a lot, because there's little point in blogging if you aren't out there to start a conversation about something. I think that while comments typically have little value to them, they can be an avenue or catalyst to deeper discussion, which includes the author expanding on what they wrote about, corrections, or more. Getting that dialogue started is one of the hardest things, I think.

On the technical side, the backend would be very simple. You'd have a single-point-of-entry page, as is typical for a web application. The commenting system could be lifted from Sporkblog and improved a little, and a middle ground is achieved. The only reasons I can think of to avoid this are (A) I'll have to write PHP, and (B) it wouldn't be a purely generated, static site anymore. I haven't decided whether it's worth adding the comment system in yet.

Purpose

One of the reasons I started web development is I wanted to make things and share them with other people. I like the feeling I get when someone likes something I've made. I enjoy making things in general, but when someone else likes what you've made, there's a feeling of pride and satisfaction. Validation, one might argue. "Cool, someone else likes this. Maybe I should make more things." I soon learned that my work pales in comparison to the work of thousands, if not millions of others... but does that mean that I shouldn't make things and shouldn't share them? I'm inclined to believe that if I did shut things down, I would be unhappy. So that's not really an option.

I think what might be better is a refocus. That requires me to take a good look at the content on Sporkbox and decide which is the most important or most fulfilling. To that end, I think Sporkbox should become a place about video game design, programming, philosophy, and reviews. Artwork by me will still appear, but likely not on the blog itself. This reflects the kind of content that I enjoy reading and writing, so it only makes sense for my website to reflect the same. I think following this will lead to a better website, both for me to write and for people to read.

Tone

This is closely related to purpose. The tone of content can completely change the feel of it, thereby influencing what sort of audience you'll reach. It can influence the way you think about something and the way you react to it. In looking over the content on Sporkbox, I noticed that a not-insignificant amount of my content has a sort of provocative tone to it. While I feel no remorse or regret over what I expressed in those posts, I feel that they do a poor job of providing much in the way of quality content and bring negativity to a place that I originally intended to be positive. I want to be able to visit my website and think to myself, "I'm creating a fun and enjoyable place," not "People will totally see I'm right about X!" or "People need to know what's happening in Y situation!" Those messages can be valid and even important, but they're not what I want here anymore. Additionally, I want to avoid current events in my posts, since they're temporal in nature and generally serve little purpose beyond click bait.

Name

Lastly, I think a name change is in order for the future. I got the name "Sporkbox" from my computer's hostname, which comes from my cat, Sporky. The thing is, Sporky's going to be 13 this year. That's roughly the equivalent of 65 years for humans. So, while she'll likely live quite a bit longer, that's still not long compared to how long I may operate this site. Should this site outlive her, I don't think I'd have the heart to work on it. I love my cat very much, and she's an incredible influence on my life, but I'm not sure my website should be named after her anymore. I have no immediate plans to retire sporkbox.us or any Sporkbox-related things, since I don't have a replacement name yet. But keep in mind that a change is on the horizon.

Design

Simplicity is one of the core principles that I try to adhere to, whether it's in design, implementation, art, or life itself. It's a very powerful force that has done nothing but good things for me. Sporkbox's current design looks fairly good, but isn't all that simple. I want to aim for something more minimalist, functional, and responsive (so smartphone users can peruse it). This will rid the design of distractions and leave nothing but the content to speak for itself. I like the idea of that very much, and I'll work to make that a reality with the new design. That's likely months away, however, so there's nothing set in stone. Thankfully, with the lack of admin tools I need to build, it should be much easier and faster to produce a good-looking, responsive layout.

tldr

In short, this website has a lot in store for it in the coming year. I'm likely going to a static site generator, the topics and tone will be more refined and focused, and even the name is likely going to change. These things are happening in order to make my website a more pleasurable place to visit and to bring higher quality content to the forefront. The new design that's coming will bring that emphasis with it.

If anyone still visits this blog, I appreciate your viewership and hope to gain a few more eyeballs on this site. These upcoming changes should be an improvement for me and you. Thanks for reading.

2022-12-11 UPDATE: It's been a while since the transition happened, but the website was renamed to zlg.space. The name of the blog itself is subject to further changes, even today.