Beginner guides.
No background assumed. What a database, a domain or an environment variable actually is, and how to get an app you built with AI online and keep it there.
276 posts · page 4 of 12
Astro vs Next.js: Which Should You Use for Your Site?
Astro ships almost no JavaScript by default and shines for content sites. Next.js is a full React application framework. How they differ in philosophy, performance, data handling and hosting — and a simple rule for picking between them.
502 Bad Gateway: What It Means and How to Fix It
A 502 means the server in front of your app (Nginx, Cloudflare, a load balancer) couldn't get a valid answer from your app. The usual causes — app crashed, wrong port, still starting, out of memory — and a step-by-step way to find which one.
500 Internal Server Error: How to Find What Actually Broke
A 500 error means your server-side code threw an error it didn't handle. The page tells you nothing on purpose; the real message is in your logs. Where to look, the most common causes in AI-built apps, and how to stop users seeing a bare 500.
www vs non-www: Which Should Your Website Use?
example.com or www.example.com? What the difference actually is, why it doesn't matter for SEO as long as you pick one, how to redirect the other, the DNS catch with root domains, and the cookie consideration that makes some teams choose www.
Who Owns AI-Generated Code? Copyright, Licences, and What It Means for Your App
If an AI wrote your app's code, who owns it? What AI providers' terms say, why copyright law cares about human authorship, the risk of code that resembles open-source projects, and practical steps to protect a product built with AI.
What Is YAML? The Config Format Behind GitHub Actions and Docker Compose
YAML is the human-readable format used for config files like GitHub Actions workflows, Docker Compose and Markdown frontmatter. The syntax in five minutes — keys, lists, nesting, strings, multi-line text — and the indentation and "no" gotchas that break files.
What Is Vite? The Build Tool Behind Lovable and Bolt Apps, Explained
Vite is the tool that runs your React app during development and bundles it for production. What Vite does, what npm run dev and npm run build actually produce, why VITE_ environment variables are public, and how to deploy the dist folder.
What Is Tailwind CSS? Why Every AI-Built App Seems to Use It
Tailwind CSS styles your app with small utility classes written straight in the HTML. What Tailwind is, how it differs from normal CSS and Bootstrap, why AI tools love it, what changed in Tailwind v4, and how to read those long class lists.
What Is Supabase? A Beginner's Guide to the Backend Behind Many AI-Built Apps
Supabase gives your app a Postgres database, logins, file storage and serverless functions from one dashboard. What each part does, how the publishable and secret keys work, why row-level security matters, free-plan limits, and when to use something else.
What Is shadcn/ui? The Component Collection Behind Lovable and v0 Apps
shadcn/ui isn't a normal component library — it copies component code into your project so you own it. What shadcn/ui is, how the CLI works, what's in a components/ui folder, why AI builders use it, and how to customise and update it.
What Is RAG? Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Beginners
RAG lets an AI answer questions about your own documents by finding the relevant pieces first and handing them to the model. How retrieval-augmented generation works, step by step, when you need it, when you don't, and the mistakes that make it give bad answers.
What Is Python? What It's Used For and Why AI Loves It
Python is a popular, readable programming language used for websites, automation, data and AI. What Python is, what it looks like, what people build with it, how to run a Python file, and when an app should use Python instead of JavaScript.
What Is Linux? A Beginner's Guide for People Building Apps
Linux runs most of the world's servers — including, probably, the one your app will live on. What Linux is, kernels vs distributions, Ubuntu vs Debian vs Alpine, how it differs from Windows and macOS, and the handful of Linux facts that prevent deploy bugs.
What Is Latency? Why Distance Makes Your App Feel Slow
Latency is the delay before data arrives; bandwidth is how much can arrive at once. What latency is, why physical distance sets a floor on it, why round trips multiply it, latency vs bandwidth vs throughput, and practical ways to make an app feel faster for faraway users.
What Is Function Calling (Tool Calling) in AI? Explained With Examples
Function calling — also called tool calling or tool use — lets an AI model ask your code to do things: look up an order, check the weather, query a database. How it works step by step, a Claude example, why the model never runs your code itself, and how to keep it safe.
What Is an SDK? SDK vs API, Explained for Beginners
An SDK is a ready-made toolkit for using a service from your code. What an SDK contains, how it differs from an API, real examples from Stripe and Anthropic, how to install one, and why AI tools sometimes invent SDK functions that don't exist.
What Is an API Key? A Plain-English Guide (With Claude and ChatGPT Examples)
An API key is a password for software. What API keys are, how they're different from your login, how to get one for Claude or OpenAI, where to keep it, why it must never be in your frontend code, and what to do if one leaks.
What Is a VPS? Virtual Private Servers Explained for Beginners
A VPS is your own slice of a physical server, with its own operating system and full control. What a VPS is, how it compares with shared hosting, PaaS and dedicated servers, what you're responsible for when you run one, and when a managed server is the better fit.
What Is a PWA? Progressive Web Apps Explained for Beginners
A progressive web app is a website that can be installed like an app, work offline and send notifications. What a PWA needs (manifest, service worker, HTTPS), what it can and can't do on iPhone and Android, and when it's a better first step than an app-store app.
What Is a DDoS Attack? A Plain-English Guide for Website Owners
A DDoS attack floods a website with traffic until real visitors can't get through. How DDoS attacks work, the main types, how likely a small site is to be hit, what DDoS protection actually does, and the cheap steps that protect a small app.
What Are Embeddings? How AI Turns Meaning Into Numbers
An embedding is a list of numbers that captures what a piece of text means, so a computer can find similar things. How embeddings work, what they're used for (search, RAG, recommendations), how to store them, and practical tips on models, dimensions and cost.
How to View Your Postgres Database: psql, GUIs, and VS Code
Want to see what's actually in your app's database? How to look inside Postgres with psql, desktop tools like pgAdmin, DBeaver and TablePlus, VS Code extensions, and your ORM's studio — plus how to connect safely to a database on a server.
Two-Factor Authentication Explained (and How to Add It to Your App)
What two-factor authentication is, how authenticator-app codes (TOTP) work, why SMS codes are the weakest option, where passkeys fit, and how to add 2FA to your own app — including recovery codes and the mistakes to avoid.
How to Turn Your Web App Into a Mobile App (Without Rebuilding It)
Three realistic paths from a web app to a phone app: make it a PWA, wrap it with Capacitor for the App Store and Google Play, or rebuild with React Native. Costs, what Apple rejects, what you need (yes, a Mac), and how to choose.