Auto Animate

I just recently discovered AutoAnimate, a drop in javascript utility that adds simple animations to your web app/site. What a fantastic little library to spice up đźŚ¶ď¸Ź your web app. 

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Craft CMS vs WordPress

In the ever-evolving world of web development and content management, two prominent platforms, Craft CMS and WordPress, have garnered substantial attention from users and developers alike. Craft CMS is a dynamic, robust content management system designed for flexibility and customization. WordPress stands as the juggernaut in the industry, celebrated for its user-friendliness and extensive ecosystem of themes and plugins. In this comparison, I will dive into three critical factors to consider when deciding between Craft CMS and WordPress: speed, scalability and security. 

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AlpineJS - Init event

I'm a huge fan of Alpine.js. One of the best features is the ability to break components and modules down into small reusable chunks of code that can easily be plugged into HTML. I generally prefer to install Alpine as a module and bundle it up with my main site javascript, but sometimes I need to break the compiled javascript into separate files. Understanding how and when to use the `alpine:init` event is the key to making this work.

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Craft CMS vs Drupal

Selecting the right Content Management System (CMS) is crucial for any website or digital project. Among the myriad options available, Craft CMS and Drupal stand out as two formidable contenders, each with its own strengths and unique characteristics. Let's dive into their respective pros and cons to help you make an informed decision for your next web project.

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Why Craft?

I get asked that question a lot, “Why Craft?” It’s not a common name in the CMS world, it doesn’t sound familiar like WordPress. Why should you consider a CMS that you have never heard of? Aren’t all CMSs roughly the same? I have been doing web development for close to twenty years. Trust me, not all CMS’s are equal. Craft has become my CMS of choice for numerous reasons.

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Twig + Webpack

I recently completed phase one of a project that required a static HTML site. Farther down the road a CMS will be rolled into the site. Being a big proponent of the DRY principle and having a short turn around time on this particular project I wanted to find a way to 1) automate code generation and leverage build tools to speed up the development process and 2) reduce code duplication as much as possible to make development and debugging faster. Part 1 was straight forward, I rely heavily on webpack during front end development for CSS and Javascript on web projects. Part 2 I wasn't so sure about. I wanted to use something I was more familiar with, specifically Twig, since I use it in every Craft project.

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Setting up a Craft CMS website and plugins with Composer

Craft has become my CMS of choice for most website projects. It's easy to work with, flexible and powerful. Composer is a great way to handle PHP libraries (Craft plugins) and packages. I am always looking for ways to streamline project setup so I came up with a way to use Composer to install Craft and also handle plugin installation. With a little setup and a quick command line command you can have Craft up and running in no time.

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Ajax login screen with Laravel 5.3

Laravel is a fantastic framework for development. Unfortunately every once in a while a little "gotcha" pops up that can really cause some problems. One of those "gotchas" is when you are trying to create an ajax based login form (instead of a standard HTML one). There are some odd redirections and response codes that work fine for a typical post - redirect scenario but cause a headache with ajax requests. Thankfully it's a minor tweak to make it work nicely.

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