StoMpd: The Complete Beginner’s Guide

StoMpd: The Complete Beginner’s Guide

What StoMpd is

StoMpd is a lightweight command-line tool and library for creating, managing, and serving static sites and simple markdown-based applications. It converts Markdown files into HTML, supports basic templating, and includes a small development server for previewing sites locally.

Key features

• Markdown-to-HTML conversion with support for extended Markdown (tables, code fences, footnotes).
• Templating using simple HTML templates and template variables.
• Local dev server with live reload for quick previews.
• Asset pipeline for copying/minifying CSS, JS, and images.
• Plugin hooks for extending build steps (e.g., image optimization, custom markdown processors).
• Config file (YAML or JSON) for site settings, routes, and build options.

Typical workflow

1. Create content as Markdown files in a content/ directory.
2. Define templates in templates/ and static assets in static/.
3. Configure site settings in stompd.config.yml (title, baseURL, output dir).
4. Run stompd build to generate the static site into the output directory.
5. Run stompd serve during development for a local server with live reload.
6. Deploy the output directory to any static hosting provider.

Basic commands (examples)

• stompd init — create starter project structure
• stompd build — build static site
• stompd serve –port 8080 — run dev server
• stompd new “My Page” — create a new Markdown page with frontmatter

Common file structure

• stompd.config.yml
• content/ — Markdown pages and posts
• templates/ — HTML templates
• static/ — CSS, JS, images
• output/ — generated site

Tips for beginners

• Use frontmatter (YAML at top of Markdown files) for metadata: title, date, tags, layout.
• Start with a minimal template and add styles incrementally.
• Keep assets small; use plugins for compression when ready.
• Version-control your project (git) and ignore the output/ folder.
• Test links and relative paths locally with stompd serve.

When to use StoMpd

• Great for documentation sites, blogs, portfolios, and simple marketing pages where server-side logic isn’t needed.
• Not suited for dynamic, database-driven web apps without an external backend.

Alternatives

Common alternatives include static site generators like Hugo, Jekyll, and Eleventy. StoMpd is best when you want a minimal, developer-friendly tool with fewer dependencies.

If you want, I can generate a starter stompd.config.yml and a sample template and Markdown page.