James L. Cowan Jr.

Architecture of a fast content site for a one-person team Top Rated How This Site Works: Architecture for a One-Person Team Web Components plus HTMX as a lean content-site architecture Most Viewed Web Components + HTMX: A Lean Architecture for Content Sites That Ship Build-time link rewriting for instant SPA-style navigation HAL: Build-Time Link Rewriting That Makes Navigation Feel Instant Shipping a content site under a strict 35KB JavaScript budget Less JavaScript, More Leverage: Why I Ship With a 35KB Budget Green code cascade representing AI infrastructure Pydantic: The Open Source Layer Quietly Running the AI Economy Zero-server analytics pipeline using Netlify Functions and GitHub commits Zero-Server Analytics: How I Replaced a SaaS Bill with Netlify Functions and GitHub

Writing

We moved a production API from Node to Bun in an afternoon @jameslcowan bun, javascript
Types without the build step: why I chose JSDoc + tsc over TypeScript files @jameslcowan typescript, javascript
Stop renting your tools: the case for replacing the software you pay for with software you own @jameslcowan product-engineering, ai
Replacing the SaaS bill: how I built my own analytics, uptime, and BI stack with agentic development @jameslcowan analytics, observability
Holding Company Structure for Bootstrapped Founders: Why I Skipped the Delaware C-Corp @jameslcowan holding-company, bootstrapping
The YC S26 Deadline Just Closed. Here's What Separates the 1.5% From Everyone Else. @jameslcowan startups, yc

Business

What is the difference between product engineering and \"just development\"? @jameslcowan product-engineering, startups
Anthropic Trained Its Replacement @jameslcowan anthropic, ai

AI

Karpathy Was Wrong: OpenClaw Still Outruns Its 5 Real Alternatives @jameslcowan openclaw, ai
OpenClaw: What It Is and How to Get the Most Out of It @jameslcowan openclaw, javascript
OpenClaw 2026.2.23: The Agent Browser Upgrade @jameslcowan openclaw, ai

SQLite

What is SQLite good for at the edge of a system? @jameslcowan sqlite, postgresql

HTMX

Mobile-First Layout That Ships: How PrimaryLayout Solves Real UX Problems @jameslcowan htmx, css
How do you connect a simple front end to a typed API? @jameslcowan typescript, javascript
HAL: Cutting 100-300KB of JavaScript by Moving Routing to Build Time @jameslcowan htmx, javascript
Progressive Enhancement with HTMX: Ship Fast, Degrade Gracefully @jameslcowan htmx, javascript
Fixing Navigation and Analytics: When Your Data Lies About User Behavior @jameslcowan htmx, javascript

Web Components

Web Components as a Business Decision @jameslcowan web-components, javascript

JavaScript

What is React, and when is the weight worth it? @jameslcowan react, javascript
What is the difference between Bun and Node? @jameslcowan bun, javascript
What is TypeScript, and why do product teams still adopt it? @jameslcowan typescript, javascript
Why I Built My Own Analytics Pipeline (And What It Actually Costs) @jameslcowan analytics, javascript
The Static Site Playbook: Shipping a Content Product on a Near-Zero Budget @jameslcowan static-site-generation, javascript
Documentation That Scales: Constitution, Contracts, and Runbooks @jameslcowan documentation, markdown

Static Sites

Static Site Generation: The Business Case for Pre-Rendered HTML @jameslcowan static-site-generation, performance
Why I Skipped the CMS @jameslcowan markdown, static-site-generation

Recommended

We moved a production API from Node to Bun in an afternoon @jameslcowan bun, javascript
Types without the build step: why I chose JSDoc + tsc over TypeScript files @jameslcowan typescript, javascript
Stop renting your tools: the case for replacing the software you pay for with software you own @jameslcowan product-engineering, ai

Recommended

We moved a production API from Node to Bun in an afternoon @jameslcowan bun, javascript
Types without the build step: why I chose JSDoc + tsc over TypeScript files @jameslcowan typescript, javascript
Stop renting your tools: the case for replacing the software you pay for with software you own @jameslcowan product-engineering, ai

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