Welcome back to “Continuous Improvement,” the podcast where we explore tools, techniques, and stories that help us all get better, one step at a time. I’m your host, Victor Leung, and today we’re diving into the world of static site generators—specifically, my journey from Gatsby to Astro and why this migration has been a game-changer for my blog.

In the ever-evolving world of web development, choosing the right tools can make or break your project. I started my blog with Gatsby, a popular static site generator known for its powerful features and vibrant plugin ecosystem. For a while, it served me well, but as the blog grew, so did the challenges.

Gatsby, while robust, began to show some cracks. The first issue was slow build times. On my two-core CPU server, building the site, especially with images, could take nearly an hour. Imagine waiting that long just to see your changes go live—it was frustrating, to say the least.

Then there were the performance issues. Some pages took an incredibly long time to load. This wasn’t just a minor inconvenience; it impacted the user experience and potentially even my SEO rankings. On top of that, the maintenance overhead became a real burden. The custom code we had built over the years made updating Gatsby a painstaking process. Each new version required significant tweaks to our setup, accumulating technical debt that slowed us down.

Enter Astro, a relatively new but promising static site generator. What caught my eye about Astro was its focus on being lightweight and fast. Unlike Gatsby, which often includes JavaScript by default, Astro serves static HTML and only adds JavaScript when it’s truly needed. This approach significantly improves page load times and overall site performance.

Setting up an Astro project is straightforward. The command npm create astro@latest gets you started with a clean slate, free from the bloat that can accumulate over time with more complex systems. This simplicity aligns perfectly with my goal of reducing cognitive load and cutting down on technical debt.

So, how did the migration go? Surprisingly smooth! Here’s the quick rundown. I started with a fresh Astro project using the command npm create astro@latest. I moved the content from my Gatsby site to Astro. Astro’s flexible content model made it easy to adapt my existing markdown files and assets. Styling and Theming: Recreating the look and feel of my Gatsby site in Astro was straightforward, and it gave me a chance to refresh the design. Finally, I thoroughly tested the site to ensure everything worked as expected. The performance improvements were immediately noticeable, with faster build times and quicker page loads.

Switching from Gatsby to Astro has been a breath of fresh air for my blog. The reduced build times, improved performance, and simplified maintenance have revitalized my content workflow. If you’re facing similar challenges with Gatsby or any other static site generator, I highly recommend giving Astro a try. The migration process is relatively painless, and the benefits are substantial, both in terms of performance and ease of use.

Astro’s lightweight nature and minimalist philosophy align perfectly with my goals of creating a lean, efficient, and manageable blog. I’m excited to continue developing and enhancing my blog with this powerful tool.

That’s it for today’s episode of “Continuous Improvement.” Thanks for tuning in. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing and leaving a review. Until next time, keep striving for continuous improvement!