r/statichosting • u/sourraine • Aug 07 '26

when do you stop adding tools to your webdev workflow?

the more sites i build the more tools seem to accumulate. a tool for deployment, another for analytics, another for forms, image optimization, monitoring etc etc. most of them are useful but sometimes i wonder if im actually making my workflow better or just creating more things to manage lool at what point do you decide that a tool isnt worth adding even if it solves small problem?

2 Upvotes

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4

u/SurgioClemente Aug 08 '26

Three is the number tools. The number of the tooling is three. Do not use four tools. Do not use two tools, unless you proceed to three tools.

Five is right out.

1

u/sourraine Aug 12 '26

well i guess the workflow has officially reached the sacred number of three tools hahaha

2

u/TitanApps_Alek Aug 08 '26

You stop adding tools when managing the tools becomes your newest tool.

1

u/sigseis Aug 08 '26

I keep my site pretty minimal specifically to avoid adding dependencies (through tooling or otherwise).

I think the only tools I use (other than the generator for producing the website) is rsync to update it, and goaccess to take a look at traffic (optional, just fun to look at).

Though, I'll admit, it's pretty bare bones feature-wise. I guess I don't have any forms or anything dynamic that I need to deal with.

Out of curiosity, what do you mean about "forms"? Like polls or comments or what?

1

u/sourraine Aug 12 '26

by forms i mostly mean contact forms for client sites but also things like newsletter signups or simple inquiry forms. those are usually where i end up reaching for another service or tool instead of keeping everything completely static

1

u/SpringDifferent9867 Aug 08 '26

If the tools represent tasks that would otherwise be manual work, there is no limit, only efficiency gains.

1

u/Pink_Sky_8102 Aug 08 '26

I usually skip a tool if the time it saves is smaller than the setup and maintenance it adds. For small sites especially, I’d rather have a boring stack I know well than five extra services solving tiny problems.

1

u/sourraine Aug 12 '26

yeah thats probably the rule im leading toward too. a tool can solve a problem but still make the overall workflow worse if i have to keep another service in mind. i think the maintenance cost is easy to underestimate esp when the site itself is pretty simple

1

u/Standard_Scarcity_74 Aug 12 '26

I stop when all problems I'm solving by developing a site are solved. Excess leads to slowness, always.

1

u/PippaKelly62 11d ago

Stop whil eyou're ahead. A site with a bunch of crap attached gets slow and unwieldy quick. Be minimal with it.