Random ramblings from author, software developer, and culture enthusiast Lucas Chasteen - now in flat files!
I've maintained a personal blog since 2012. Back then, it was called ThinkBoxly. First it was hosted on WordPress.com, then Blogger, then self-hosted WordPress, then Blogger again. Now it lives here. All things considered, it's impressive that it has survived to this day.
Welcome to the latest installment in what has been an ongoing experiment from the start. After suffering numerous identity crises, the old brand is no more and lucasc.me is here to stay. This is my corner of the web to share things that are important to me (Lucas C). I've preserved as much old content as possible, though a few posts have been lost here and there along the way.
Traditional blog platforms are awesome, but they're a pain. WordPress is overkill, insecure, and is relatively difficult to preserve long-term. Blogger is a free service owned by Google, so it stands a decent chance at long-term survival with little maintenance required. But on the other hand, its code is cluttered and ugly, and the platform lacks even the most basic features of a proper CMS.
Enter the flat file CMS. "Flat file" means there's no database, just a template and simple static posts (usually in markdown) that can easily be preserved long-term in SCM repositories, yet also provide a modern experience through dynamic extensions.
I also consider it a plus that this experiment's code is fully visible to the public. Now you can also see what I've been up to behind the scenes!
This version of the site is automatically deployed right here on GitHub from my own server, where it runs on HTMLy. Because HTMLy posts are just markdown, I can easily move to other flat file or static site generators without anything getting lost in translation.
Due to changing platforms and brands, coming up with a single viewership stat is challenging, but I can say that my articles are well into six-figure territory as of 2019. When will we cross one million viewers? Who knows!
Unless otherwise noted, all content is copyright © 2012-present Lucas Chasteen. Some third-party media used for illustration or critique under principles of Fair Use. Excerpts and links may be used with proper and clear credit along with direction to the original content.