SimpleBlogger

note: this project is still under-development

SimpleBlogger is a lightweight JavaScript tool to build static blogs for your website. It converts your markdown files into html files and organizes them on the /blog path of your website. Perfect for developers who want to quickly set up a blog without relying on heavy frameworks or databases.

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Features

• Markdown to HTML Conversion: Easily convert .md files into .html files.
• Automatic Indexing: Generates a posts.json file to keep track of all your blog posts.
• Simple CLI: Initialize and build your blog with just two commands.
• Customizable: Add your own styles and templates to the generated HTML files.
• No Dependencies: Just plain JavaScript and a few lightweight libraries.

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Installation

SimpleBlogger is a command-line tool, so it should be installed globally. Run the following command to install it:

npm install -g simpleblogger

Usage

1. Initialize Your Blog

Suppose your website is located in src folder, then go into that folder and Run the following command to set up the blog structure:

simpleblogger init

This will create the following folder structure:

blog/
  ├── index.html          # Blog homepage
  └── posts/
       ├── posts-md/      # Folder for Markdown files
       ├── posts-html/    # Folder for generated HTML files
       └── posts.json     # Metadata for all posts

2. Create a New Post

Use the create-post command to generate a new Markdown post template:

simpleblogger create-post "My First Post"

This will create a file like blog/posts/posts-md/my-first-post.md with pre-filled front matter:

---
title: My First Post
date: 2023-10-01
---
# Welcome to My Blog
This is my first post!

Do not change anything in between the --- & ---

3. Build Your Blog

Run the following command to convert Markdown files to HTML and update the posts.json file:

simpleblogger build

This will:

• Convert all .md files in posts-md/ to .html files in posts-html/.
• Update posts.json with metadata (title, date, and file path).
• It will also index your blog posts at yourwebsite.com/blog

4. View Your Blog

Open the blog/index.html file in your browser to see your blog in action. You can deploy the blog/ folder to your website's /blog path.

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Example

Folder Structure After Initialization

blog/
  ├── index.html
  └── posts/
       ├── posts-md/
       │    └── post1.md
       ├── posts-html/
       │    └── post1.html
       └── posts.json

posts.json After Building

[
  {
    "id": 0,
    "title": "My First Post",
    "date": "2023-10-01",
    "file": "post1.html"
  }
]

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Customization

Styling Your Blog

You can customize the appearance of your blog by editing the blog/index.html file and adding your own CSS.

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Feature Requests or Bugs

If you'd like a new feature or want to report a bug, open an issue or pull requests are most welcome.

Contributing

Read CONTRIBUTING.MD for more info.

License

SimpleBlogger is open-source software licensed under the MIT License.

Contact

I can be contacted through my email at [email protected]

Support

If you find this tool useful, consider giving it a ⭐ on GitHub. For questions or issues, please open an issue on the repository.

Happy blogging! 🚀