I'm Back - Again!

DevelopRx to Hugo

Back in 2015, I came up with a simple site design. I used WordPress as my platform, chose WP-Forge as the theme, and created a logo using an open font I found on the interwebs. With Windows Live Writer (WLW) hooked up on my desktop, life was good.

Then Microsoft dumped WLW. I had started writing how-tos in Markdown, so it seemed like it would be easy to switched to Hugo and create a static site (faster/safer!). I converted my WordPress site, but then I hit a snag… search. Hugo’s primary plan was to use Google Search for my own site. 🤡

So, I didn’t implement it. That was 5 years ago.

In the meantime, I kept taking notes locally using Joplin. Fantastic program until I screwed up a sync and managed to delete most of my notes (backups are your friend, people!). Between Joplin, Markdown files, and various other write-ups, my content grew, especially once I started using AI. From local models to free online tools and finally Claude, the how-tos came in tidal waves of really cool stuff. Where was I supposed to put it all?

Full circle. Back to the website!

I looked at WordPress again, but there is still no good replacement for WLW. To make matters worse, the WP-Forge theme disappeared years ago, and the WC Roughtrad font site now links to a sexting page. Since most of my notes are already in .md format, I asked Claude for advice. I quizzed Claude and he/she said, “Dude, it’s a no-brainer. Hugo.”

Five years ago, Hagrid said, “You’re a Hugo wizard.” Now? After a power supply mishap resulted in a 16TB data loss, I couldn’t even find my files on the hard drive. I had to start from step one again. Fortunately, I was familiar with the road. After six long days, my site was converted.

So, how did I do? 🙂

I’m purging all the really old posts but keeping a few that have sentimental value. This version is based on the updated Hugo Mainroad theme, Roadster with lots of tweaks (see DEVELOPRX HUGO).