i'll be honest: i've built my share of web apps, but the term "full stack developer" still feels slippery. not because i avoid frontends (i don't), but because modern "full stack" seems to mean knowing not only the server-side magic, but also the ins and outs of whichever javascript framework is ruling the charts this quarter -- react, angular, vue, solid, alpine, you name it.
see, my go-to toolkit -- templating like jinja or nunjucks, htmx (unpoly is definitely on my radar) -- makes building interfaces refreshingly direct. no six-step build pipeline, no "wait, why did the button stop working after the last npm update?" drama. just powerful hypermedia, lean on the browser, easy to reason about.
yet, i get it—there's a reason javascript frameworks have taken over. they deliver dizzying animations, fluid experiences, and open up new possibilities that server-rendered apps often can't match. but every time i try to dive in, i realize that each framework isn't just a syntax tweak—it's a whole new world: modules, folder structures, state management, virtual doms, and, of course, another deep-dive into npm.
as the htmx crowd puts it:
javascript fatigue: longing for a hypertext already in hand
here's the thing: i'm not allergic to new tech—more power to the frontend magicians. my heart just beats for the "classic" web, where links and forms are still heroes, but my curiosity's always piqued by what the js wizards are conjuring next. call it cautious admiration: there's real brilliance zipping around both sides of the stack. maybe one day i'll hop the fence, trade in my mast, and join the dashboard pilots.
meanwhile, when all you need is a working button, i'll be over here, making sure the backend won't let it down.