Avatar

Blog Questions Challenge

Published: January 19, 2025 - Updated: March 23, 2025

I've been seeing people doing posts based on Kev Quirks the Blog Questions Challenge, and I thought I'd join in and give my answers for the fun of it.

Why did you start blogging in the first place?

I started keeping a "Daily Diary" on GeoCities somewhere around the mid '90s. I keep coming back to what we now call blogging every so often, and I've had this domain since 2010. It started as a bit of fun to keep a log of things I got up to, and I've had phases of doing straight up tutorials and posts about software I've made. But it's always been about me, I might have a bit of an ego.

What platform are you using to manage your blog, and why did you choose it?

Currently, I'm using Hugo to build my site, but I'm hoping to write my own SSG if I can get around to it.

Have you blogged on other platforms before?

When I started I wrote everything as static HTML in a text editor, then there was FrontPage, Dreamweaver MX back to Notepad++ to build my own CMS in PHP. I used WordPress for the long time, but every time I had to move server I would have to start over again. Usually because the DB export would fail, or I didn't get a chance to make a back-up.

How do you write your posts? For example, in a local editing tool, or in a panel/dashboard that's part of your blog?

Currently, I use VS-Code with the Front Matter plug-in, but I'm probably going to move to using Obsidian or some other Markdown editor. I've heard good things about Apostrophe.

When do you feel most inspired to write?

I spend a lot of time reading RSS feeds of other bloggers, and news outlets, but I just seem to end up writing whatever is on my mind at the time I feel like writing.

Do you publish immediately after writing, or do you let it simmer a bit as a draft?

I publish as soon as I'm done correcting the spelling. If I leave it too long I tend to forget about it, and then I delete any drafts that have sat around for too long, or I use them as a starting point for a new post.

What's your favourite post on your blog?

I don't have one, probably because I don't think anyone actually reads them. So I don't get attached to what I write in that way.

Any future plans for your blog? Maybe a redesign, a move to another platform, or adding a new feature?

There's the SSG that I swear I'll finish someday, that'll require a redesign. As for features, I would like to integrate with more of the IndieWeb if I can. For the most part I'm still trying to figure out what I want to write about.

At some point I want to write an importer to bring in all the posts I backed up from the various walled gardens I quit (Twitter, Instagram, Farcebook).

davehenry.blog by Dave Henry is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 button