Guides

Warning

This whole section is still a work in progress. There is a lot of incomplete content and some of the content that is there is not yet polished.

This is a collection of guides that address common issues in web development, specifically tailored to Django. Each guide provides solutions, patterns, and approaches that are relevant to Django projects. It is similar to the Django topic guides, but instead of focusing on components of the framework like forms, models, views, etc., it focuses on more general topics like task queues, deployment, realtime, etc.

These guides are based on my own experience and are quite opinionated. For each guide, I will share my current approach (which may change with new experiences) for tackling the issue at hand. I will also include alternatives so that you can make your own decision. The number of guides will be limited, as this is not a blog where I post anything and everything (for that, check out my blog). Instead, this is more like a collection of recipes for common problems. If you have feedback on the content of any of the guides, please open a new GitHub discussion. Whether you think I’m wrong about something, have suggestions for improvement, or have a better approach to solve a specific issue, I’ll be happy to hear it.

Note

I want to use GitHub discussions mostly for the guides part, and issues (broken code) for the CLI part.

Most of the stuff here is aimed at folks who are somewhere between beginners and intermediate developers, leaning more towards the intermediate side. It’s kinda assumed that you’ve done a couple of Django projects (like the official Django tutorial). I reckon you need to be pretty familiar with the framework to feel comfortable reading these guides. But hey, I’ll do my best to make them as easy to digest as possible and provide enough external resources for a deeper understanding.

External Ressources

Before diving into the guides, here are my top recommendations for external resources that’ll help you become a better django and web developer in general.

The obvious ones

The official Django documentation

Django’s documentation is arguably one of the best I have encountered. The Topics guides and How-to guides are particularly noteworthy and should not be overlooked.

The HTMX documentation

The htmx documentation have everything you need to understand htmx but they also have great essays that are worth reading to broader your understanding of web development.

Programming principles

HTML First

HTML First is a set of principles that aims to make building web software easier, faster, more inclusive, and more maintainable.

KISS

Keep it simple, stupid. This is a design principle that states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complicated.

WYAGNI

When Are You Gonna Need It? A look at how we reduce scope, what we lose along the way, and what we could gain if we didn’t. With a short story from the startup trenches.

12 Factor App

The twelve-factor app is a methodology for building software-as-a-service applications. These best practices are designed to enable applications to be built with portability and resilience when deployed to the web.

Blog articles and videos

Adam Johnson blog

A core Django developer, he provides comprehensive and unique content covering every aspect of the framework.

BugBytes

This is a great YouTube channel that provides a wealth of Django and HTMX content.

The special ones

The Grug Brained Developer

A layman’s guide to thinking like the self-aware smol brained.

The Cult of Done

The cult of done manifesto is a set of principles that aims to help you get things done.

Need Help with Django?

For general assistance with Django-related issues, visit the Django Community page.