[HacktionLab] Workshop proposal for BarnCamp: How static HTML saved my marriage

[ekes]

On 22/03/13 16:57, yossarian wrote:
> On 22/03/13 08:00, Mike Harris wrote:
>> But yes, I get why CMSes came about. I just feel it has to be said
>> that perhaps some of them have gone too far....
>>> static site generators keep them apart so stuff like (ruby) Jekyll,
>>> (php) Phrozn are probably better?
>> I've not used either, have you?
> 
> I've used Jekyll and found it a very easy way to write fairly large
> amounts of documentation, blog posts, etc. It's not for everybody though.

Phrozn is simpler (read newer, less developed) than Jekyll, so is less
powerful, but at the same time it does mean setting up and using is
pretty straightforward.

Content is twig, markdown or textile (they package with the standard
install anyway). You put it into a directory / directory hierarchy, can
add some simple metadata like permalink; tags;.. that's pretty much it
at the top. Oh! It does variables.

Layout is basically twig, with yes the concept of being able to include
etc. So I guess creating your own custom layout is possibly the most
complicated bit. But to get going it's just changing the standard layout
(which is based on... you guessed it... Boostrap - I'm not convinced but
that's another story).

Getting your head round the full power of twig is like customizing a CMS
layout (exactly like it if you look at Drupal 8). How many people
actually do that? You can just tinker with existing ones.

To do more serious blogging (for example) with Phrozn it would need more
extensions. It'll do tag list pages but not much more out of the box.
I'm not sure they are written; like don't think I've seen a pagination
one yet! I'm no expert though. Producing a pretty static site like I
read the initial proposal is no problem however.

> As I think Ekes said, I found it
> really great to have all the templating separated out from the site
> content, but without all the overheads associated with a full website.

Yep. Site content - metadata and templating logically separated. Makes
stepping to whatever the next-big-thing-is much easier if nothing else.
But still able to reuse some content automatically elsewhere in the site
if desired.

> I would be happy to run a secret, off-the-books session on Jekyll and/or
> Octopress for Mike or whoever else, without the nerd/ball/tech/geek gag
> (whatever it's now called). 

I'm guessing a more out-of-the-box introduction to Jekyll would be
similar? Like using example templates and just altering them. Rather
than going all at making your own layout?

Cheers, ekes