Show HN: Creating a website should be as easy as creating a Word doc (opens in new tab)

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8 pointsnateparrott11y ago7 comments

7 comments

Great job. Nice execution. I would recommend adding some type of simple tutorial walk-through after the new page is first created. It took a little while for it to sink in that this is a blank canvas and I can start typing, etc. Maybe the fact that the canvas is the same color as the background of the site, it is not easy that this is a "word doc" where I can start building. I know you probably want to keep it minimalistic, but it might help to outline the canvas so this fact is more obvious.

smt8811y ago

My first reaction: creating a website already is as easy as creating a Word doc.

How is this different (or how will it be different) from creating a Google Doc and sharing it with the public? Or using Google Sites for that matter?

(Not trying to jam you up -- genuinely interested in this and your answer.)

jumasheff11y ago

Well, I am going to teach programming basics using Codecademy, and this project is a great tool which I will use so that my students can build things from the very first lessons and show their parents/friends their outcomes.

The project beats Google Sites by allowing you to edit HTML, CSS, JavaScript right from the browser with minimal efforts.

nateparrottOP11y ago

That's why I'm doing this — I think it's crazy that our best solution for creating a simple, one-off site is to use a collaborative document service and share the link. Google Docs is built for documents, and you can tell—hopefully this can evolve into a better solution to the use case where you want to create a really simple web page. Thanks for the feedback!

smt8811y ago

"As easy as a Word doc" is misleading then. Editing CSS and JS isn't as easy as Word, even if it's considered a feature and a convenience.

I do think it's a good, catchy phrase, but it isn't necessarily hitting your target market.

Are you pretty similar to a hosted Jekyll service, then?

1 more reply

jumasheff11y ago

Cool project. I'd kindly give you a pointer to try to collaborate with Codecademy team. They are super friendly and grounded guys to work with. I'm sure you can come up with a great joint project with them.

fiatjaf11y ago

Amazing take at simplicity. Anyone can edit by default is great, email-only authentication better yet.

I just don't know how to add more pages.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

7 comments

diasks211y ago

smt8811y ago

My first reaction: creating a website already is as easy as creating a Word doc.

How is this different (or how will it be different) from creating a Google Doc and sharing it with the public? Or using Google Sites for that matter?

(Not trying to jam you up -- genuinely interested in this and your answer.)

jumasheff11y ago

The project beats Google Sites by allowing you to edit HTML, CSS, JavaScript right from the browser with minimal efforts.

nateparrottOP11y ago

smt8811y ago

"As easy as a Word doc" is misleading then. Editing CSS and JS isn't as easy as Word, even if it's considered a feature and a convenience.

I do think it's a good, catchy phrase, but it isn't necessarily hitting your target market.

Are you pretty similar to a hosted Jekyll service, then?

1 more reply

jumasheff11y ago

fiatjaf11y ago

Amazing take at simplicity. Anyone can edit by default is great, email-only authentication better yet.

I just don't know how to add more pages.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse