Hello World!

The classic phrased used by every programmer for something new, “Hello World!” And here indeed is something new: my own site and showcase.

It’s been too long coming. I bought the domain perryjauld.dev years ago when the .dev top level domain was first introduced, with this very goal. I wanted to finally branch out into “real” web development, and start building sites and apps. Well, some 7 years later and I finally have my first basic site up 😅.

The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is right now.

So here we finally are. I intend to use this site as a launching ground for little experiments, trying things out, and learning. I’ll also post periodically and you can read my opinions if you want. I plan to post just about any topic that I think about: being a father of 3, web development, NetSuite development, current events, cooking, the NFL, fantasy football, games, rabbits; whatever I feel like putting out there.

This particular site is built with SvelteKit, and was a fun experiment in both learning that and learning to better use AI to code. Indeed, this was built using GitHub Copilot and I wouldn’t blame you for thinking less of it now. But the reality for me in my current season of life is I’m very short on time. I feel like I’m at a place where I could learn all this by myself and build it, but it would take even longer than the procrastinating to even get started. AI can be a fantastic tool, but it is a tool. My boss told me a wonderful analogy:

AI is a chainsaw. Before it, developers were lumberjacks with axes: chopping away at a tree one swing at a time. Now they can cut it down a lot faster.

I like this analogy, and think you could continue to run with it if you want. Everyone has their own preference of axe (programming language) and method for cutting (programming paradigm). And the chainsaw has emboldened a lot of non-lumberjacks to try cutting down trees (vibe coding). And if you’re not careful or don’t know what you’re doing already, you’ll chop your hands off. So while it does lower the barrier to entry significantly, the safest hands are still the lumberjack’s (and the ones still attached to your arms).

So I will continue to post new things, new experiments, and new thoughts here. Most will be coded using AI to speed things up, and always having the AI explaing what it’s doing so I continue to learn. My goal is to only post things that I understand and could build without AI, given enough time and a sharp enough axe. I’ll eventually add more things that make this blog feel more bloggy, and easier to separate the various topics I may ramble on. Until then, feel free to stop by from time to time.