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Ask HN: Visual interfaces for editing markdown-based static sites?

I rolled out a very nice Docusaurus-powered handbook at the startup where I work inspired by Posthog's but it has been swiftly sent to the graveyard as non-technical folks don't feel empowered to add to it. I don't really have a good answer, and bafflingly from searching it seems like the only choices are to roll up a heavy CMS integration which I don't think people would be happy with me if I spent the time on. Any alternatives that don't mean I have to abandon it? It feels like there's a gaping hole in the toolchain here for JAMstack

skydhash 3y ago
I feel it would be better to just roll out a google doc as a living documents, and publish a pdf or html version as the official document. I used StackEdit for a while, but it still requires to know the markdown syntax.
- stuartjohnson12 3y ago
  Ah man, that feels so unsatisfying. The fact that there are so many JAM site generators still without a good CMS that doesn't have a heavy integration process just makes me sad. Part of the ideology of JAM was that batteries are included and editing is simple. An interface that needs technical knowledge and docs-reading seems the opposite of that.
- quickthrower2 3y ago
  OneNote, Confluence etc. solve this problem as much as they are hated. Or mediawiki etc.
Leftium 3y ago
I built a prettifier for Google Forms: https://gg.leftium.com/pretty https://gg.leftium.com/pretty Based on non-technical peoples' convention of using Google Forms to create sign-up pages (and even purely informational pages) like this: https://forms.gle/y2JF9RKipWcDWupP7 https://forms.gle/y2JF9RKipWcDWupP7 My prettifier supports markdown syntax, but Google Forms also supports WYSIWYG editing. There's even a Google-sheets based router for building a simple site with navigation: - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uFQ8W20dkHr01KB_zaoUkLU_1YhIAt7DtNOUNiHqKAk https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uFQ8W20dkHr01KB_zaoU... - https://gg.leftium.com/ https://gg.leftium.com/ Open-source: https://github.com/Leftium/cloud9dancehall.com https://github.com/Leftium/cloud9dancehall.com
KeithBrink 3y ago
You can look into a Git-based CMS, such as https://github.com/decaporg/decap-cms https://github.com/decaporg/decap-cms These typically are designed to support static site generators.
codegeek 3y ago
Try tina cms https://tina.io https://tina.io Currently testing it with Docusaurus for our documentation site. Edit: They have an integration with Docusauruas already here: https://github.com/tinacms/tinasaurus https://github.com/tinacms/tinasaurus
slorber 3y ago
Docusaurus maintainer here I agree the md editing story for non-dev contributor is not great. You can try a git based CMS like Tina, they have a Docusaurus starter/example. StackBlitz web publisher is also a good solution, allowing you to run Docusaurus directly in the browser in a very simple interface allowing you to commit or send PRs easily. No need to install nodejs locally, and you get a real preview.
slorber 3y ago
Wonder if it's not possible to use this dark matter product (normally for Astro) with Docusaurus worth giving it a try https://getdarkmatter.dev/ https://getdarkmatter.dev/
solardev 3y ago
(Disclaimer: I work for one of these) This is the niche that headless CMSes excel in. Your editors get an easy to use GUI (vendor or self hosted, though IMO the commercial ones are nicer and easier to use). Your developers get JSON and Markdown. You can also use WordPress with Advanced Custom Forms to accomplish something similar in an hour or two.
joegahona 3y ago
OP: Please update this if you find an answer. I just rolled out a Docusaurus-powered documentation site myself — my first persona is developers, so getting them to update Markdown isn’t too much to ask, but in 2024 I plan to expand the scope of the site to include product managers, program managers, and even chiefs-of-staff and executive assistants, so this will be top of mind for me. This is exactly how things like Confluence and even Google Docs (or Slides!) crop up and take hold. Those tools aren’t evil per se but they’re not ideal for developer documentation.
bosky101 3y ago
Self hosted outline is exactly what you need https://github.com/outline/outline https://github.com/outline/outline
- joshxyz 3y ago
  i went from using nextra to obsidian to outline. nextra is fine for devs, just edit github repo. obsidian is fine for personal, but its over configurability and unclear teams pricing and sync pricing is pain in the ass. outline is the sweet spot. $10 per month for the whole team, easy to add and edit pages, easy to save. it provides that markdown-compatible WYSIWYG experience.

skydhash 3y ago

I feel it would be better to just roll out a google doc as a living documents, and publish a pdf or html version as the official document. I used StackEdit for a while, but it still requires to know the markdown syntax.

stuartjohnson12 3y ago
Ah man, that feels so unsatisfying. The fact that there are so many JAM site generators still without a good CMS that doesn't have a heavy integration process just makes me sad. Part of the ideology of JAM was that batteries are included and editing is simple. An interface that needs technical knowledge and docs-reading seems the opposite of that.
quickthrower2 3y ago
OneNote, Confluence etc. solve this problem as much as they are hated. Or mediawiki etc.

Leftium 3y ago

I built a prettifier for Google Forms: https://gg.leftium.com/pretty https://gg.leftium.com/pretty Based on non-technical peoples' convention of using Google Forms to create sign-up pages (and even purely informational pages) like this: https://forms.gle/y2JF9RKipWcDWupP7 https://forms.gle/y2JF9RKipWcDWupP7 My prettifier supports markdown syntax, but Google Forms also supports WYSIWYG editing. There's even a Google-sheets based router for building a simple site with navigation: - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uFQ8W20dkHr01KB_zaoUkLU_1YhIAt7DtNOUNiHqKAk https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uFQ8W20dkHr01KB_zaoU... - https://gg.leftium.com/ https://gg.leftium.com/ Open-source: https://github.com/Leftium/cloud9dancehall.com https://github.com/Leftium/cloud9dancehall.com

KeithBrink 3y ago

You can look into a Git-based CMS, such as https://github.com/decaporg/decap-cms https://github.com/decaporg/decap-cms These typically are designed to support static site generators.

codegeek 3y ago

Try tina cms https://tina.io https://tina.io Currently testing it with Docusaurus for our documentation site. Edit: They have an integration with Docusauruas already here: https://github.com/tinacms/tinasaurus https://github.com/tinacms/tinasaurus

slorber 3y ago

Docusaurus maintainer here I agree the md editing story for non-dev contributor is not great. You can try a git based CMS like Tina, they have a Docusaurus starter/example. StackBlitz web publisher is also a good solution, allowing you to run Docusaurus directly in the browser in a very simple interface allowing you to commit or send PRs easily. No need to install nodejs locally, and you get a real preview.

slorber 3y ago

Wonder if it's not possible to use this dark matter product (normally for Astro) with Docusaurus worth giving it a try https://getdarkmatter.dev/ https://getdarkmatter.dev/

solardev 3y ago

(Disclaimer: I work for one of these) This is the niche that headless CMSes excel in. Your editors get an easy to use GUI (vendor or self hosted, though IMO the commercial ones are nicer and easier to use). Your developers get JSON and Markdown. You can also use WordPress with Advanced Custom Forms to accomplish something similar in an hour or two.

joegahona 3y ago

OP: Please update this if you find an answer. I just rolled out a Docusaurus-powered documentation site myself — my first persona is developers, so getting them to update Markdown isn’t too much to ask, but in 2024 I plan to expand the scope of the site to include product managers, program managers, and even chiefs-of-staff and executive assistants, so this will be top of mind for me. This is exactly how things like Confluence and even Google Docs (or Slides!) crop up and take hold. Those tools aren’t evil per se but they’re not ideal for developer documentation.

bosky101 3y ago

Self hosted outline is exactly what you need https://github.com/outline/outline https://github.com/outline/outline

joshxyz 3y ago
i went from using nextra to obsidian to outline. nextra is fine for devs, just edit github repo. obsidian is fine for personal, but its over configurability and unclear teams pricing and sync pricing is pain in the ass. outline is the sweet spot. $10 per month for the whole team, easy to add and edit pages, easy to save. it provides that markdown-compatible WYSIWYG experience.