Choosing a Brand New Stack - GSWP

Interpreted or Compiled?

My first decision was philosophical: interpreted or compiled? I had come from a desktop world built on an interpreted RAD framework. It was fast to prototype, but slow to debug — errors often hid until runtime. Compiled languages, on the other hand, catch errors early and produce reliable executables. Yes, compilation adds friction. But it also adds clarity. For me, interpreted languages were a source of slow fatigue. Compiled languages offered instant clarity — and fewer surprises.

The backend choice - Go

I considered the usual suspects: PHP, Python, Java, JavaScript. All interpreted. Then I stumbled upon Go — a compiled language with simplicity and Long Term Support at its core. It is not first choice among frontend web developers, but it is fast, clean and concurrent. A basic “Hello World” site in Go weighs about 6 MB — including the web server. No external runtime. No framework magic. Just an executable Go. It felt like a breath of fresh air.

The default frontend choice - Vanilla HTML/CSS/JS

I did not really have any choice here. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are the holy trinity of the browser. Sure, I could have added HTMX, jQuery, SASS or Tailwind — but none of them aligned with my compass. Simplicity first. I chose to stick with the basics and avoid layering on complexity I did not need.

Battle-Tested Database - PostgreSQL

Why change a winning horse? I have used PostgreSQL for over 15 years. It is simple, stable, fast — and trusted in military-grade systems. Long-Term Support is practically its middle name. It is the kind of tool that disappears into the background and just works.

GSWP — Go Simple Web Platform

Go for backend logic. HTML, CSS, JavaScript for the frontend. PostgreSQL for persistence. Every choice in GSWP follows one principle: I'd rather write more code I understand than less code I don't. More typing, yes. More boilerplate, yes. But also zero hidden behavior and debuggable code from top to bottom.

Lesson learned: GWSP is not mainstream and comfortable. But way smaller.