Russell J Pier

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  • 🍳 Introducing Roux: Reimagining Recipe Apps for the Modern Kitchen

    A developer's journey into transforming how we discover, manage and share recipes

    Aug 11, 2025

    After Yummly's shutdown left 15 million users scrambling for alternatives, it's clear the recipe app market desperately needs disruption—platforms prioritize ads over experience while creators struggle with algorithm dependency. Roux is building an AI-powered recipe platform that puts creators first and users second, featuring natural language parsing, intelligent meal planning, and complete data ownership through both mobile apps and developer-grade CLI tools.

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  • 🍄 Foraged: Write Once, Run Everywhere (Terminal + Web)

    Using computers the way nature intended

    Aug 1, 2025

    Foraged enables building terminal UIs with React components that run identically in both terminal and browser environments, with perfect state synchronization between CLI commands and web URLs. Your terminal application becomes instantly shareable, mobile-accessible, and demo-friendly without writing a single line of additional code.

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  • 🐦‍🔥 The Future of Web Development

    Why it may not be React or even Javascript at all

    Mar 18, 2025

    After years of building React apps, I've been exploring Phoenix LiveView. The results have been surprising - in both good and challenging ways.

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  • 🌬️ My Love-Hate Relationship with Tailwind CSS

    Why I reach for it more often than not, despite the taste it leaves in my mouth

    Feb 27, 2025

    This isn't a story of complete conversion—it's a pragmatic journey from skepticism to acceptance. With Tailwind CSS 4.0 now available, it feels like the right time to dissect this cognitive dissonance that many developers, including myself, experience: loving a tool that seemingly violates everything we were taught about 'proper' CSS.

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  • 🖇️ Using CSS clip-path

    Create engaging shapes and animations with pure CSS

    Feb 21, 2025

    CSS clip-path is a powerful property that allows you to create complex shapes by defining a visible region of an element. Instead of being limited to rectangles, you can transform elements into circles, polygons, or completely custom shapes.

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  • 🎯 How to Center a Div

    A Manual for centering any element in HTML/CSS

    Feb 19, 2025

    Centering elements in CSS can be one of those deceptively tricky tasks that every developer faces. Whether you're working on a simple blog layout or a complex application, knowing multiple techniques to center content both horizontally and vertically is invaluable. In this blog post, we’ll explore a wide array of methods to achieve centering, discuss when each method is most appropriate, and provide code examples to help you apply them in your projects.

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