Minimalist, AI and Self-Reflection, npm link, Declarative ShadowDOM, and Project Calavera
A roundup of some of the things I have been up to since the last newsletter.
It has been around twelve days since the last edition of the newsletter. I hope you all had a lovely holiday season and are looking forward to 2025. I am cautiously optimistic for 2025 on the personal front and sincerely hope the world at large will have some good news for us all. ✌️
Declarative Shadow DOM - 12 Days of Web
On December 18, 2024, I was honored to have my post on Declarative Shadow DOM published as part of the yearly 12 Days of Web series run by Stephanie Eckles who you may know from projects such as ModernCSS.dev.
The post turned out to be quite a beast, but I am pretty proud of it and learned a lot in the process. So grab a cup or glass of your favorite beverage and learn more about Declarative Shadow DOM.
The web and the technologies that power it are constantly evolving, and so too have web components. In this article, I will first highlight the challenge that has made using web components, specifically the shadow DOM, a non-starter for many projects. But then, we will explore an evolution of shadow DOM that is already well-supported in modern browsers, known as declarative shadow DOM, and learn how it breaks down one of the final obstacles and enables us to write reusable, isolated web components that can be server-side rendered or used as part of a statically generated website.
Announcing Minimalist: A Minimal Modern CSS Library for Most Web Projects
This little CSS library has been in various stages of existence for a long, long time. It originated as an idea I had while still on the MDN Web Docs team but has now evolved into something very specific.
Minimalist prioritizes simplicity, elegance, and practicality over sprawling complexity or feature bloat. While it includes a few utility classes for convenience, Minimalist is not intended to replace general-purpose utility libraries. Instead, it serves as a reliable, slightly opinionated base layer that works seamlessly with your unique design vision.
If my website looks a little more stylish, it is thanks to Minimalist.
Read more about Minimalist, try it out, and get involved.
Exploring the Role of AI in Self-Reflection and Emotional Growth
This one might seem a little odd coming from me 😁 But hear me out and take a moment to read the full article. I still harbor concerns about artificial intelligence and its implications. However, I also recognize its potential and believe it would be a missed opportunity not to explore its benefits.
Through experimentation, we can find a balance—keeping the good, discarding what doesn’t serve us, and advancing thoughtfully. As always, I welcome other perspectives and encourage constructive, civil conversations on this topic.
Read, Exploring the Role of AI in Self-Reflection.
Using npm link for Local Package Development
As part of the work I have done on Minimalist and another project I will mention a little later in the newsletter, I have been using npm link to test these NPM packages locally instead of constantly publishing patch releases as a means of testing. I mean common, we are at the tail end of 2024 and people are speculating about Artificial General Intelligence in 2025 😁 so thank goodness for npm link.
Learn how npm link can save you time
Introducing Project Calavera: Your Universal Project Configuration Assistant
The other project I hinted at earlier is Project Calavera which I announced today. Much like Minimalist, this one has also been around in various forms before it found form in what I am announcing today. It just goes to show that more often than not things need to bake in the oven for some time before you can take them out and enjoy the skeleton-shaped cookies. 😉
While modern frontend frameworks like Vite, Astro, and Svelte come with their own scaffolding tools, there’s been a noticeable gap in the ecosystem. What if you’re working on a vanilla JavaScript project? What if you need to add TypeScript or Stylelint configuration to an existing project? That’s where Project Calavera steps in.
Learn more about Project Calavera, try it out, and get involved.
Frontend Engineering Explained
I am starting a new project called, well, Frontend Engineering Explained. This one is very much still in the oven baking so, I will let you know more about this one in the next newsletter.
What the sort?
Enjoy this great video from, Lydia Hallie as she explains what’s up with this sort in JavaScript.
Until next time! Keep making the web accessible for all - and please have fun while you do so.