A Tangled.org Deploy Script for Cloudflare
Deploy your static content to Cloudflare with Tangled.org CI workflows. Goodbye, GitHub Actions.
Christopher Bennell
I build web stuff. Full Stack/Platform Engineering/Architecture. Senior Software Engineer.
Latest posts
"Every Layout" Mixins
Every Layout is a collection of composable CSS layout patterns. Here's how I've extracted them into a reusable pattern library I can use in any project.
Using Pundit in Phlex Components
Pundit's helper module makes it easy to do authorization checks in our Phlex views.
Site Redesign Postmortem
After a redesign of this site, I share some thoughts on the unexpected benefits and surprising lessons of vanilla CSS.
Phlex Tabs: Multiple Capture Blocks in a Phlex Component
Here's how I created a flexible interface for a Phlex component that captures multiple blocks, while maintaining backward compatibility with the simpler string-based API.
Honeybadger Deploy Notifications with Kamal Hooks
A solution for reporting Kamal deployments to Honeybadger using Kamal post-deploy hooks.
I Tried Three CSS Frameworks So You Don't Have To
I tested OpenProps, Bulma, and TailwindCSS while migrating to Bridgetown, and found they fall on a revealing continuum from pure CSS custom properties to all-in utility classes. Here's what I learned about each approach.
Bridgetown, TailwindCSS and Kamal: A Tricky Deploy Bug
Deploying a Bridgetown site with Kamal? Watch out for a sneaky Tailwind bug. When the jit-refresh.css file is gitignored, fresh checkouts fail silently during the build process, stripping all your Tailwind styles. Here's how to fix it with a simple esbuild plugin instead of patching your Dockerfile.
Migrating from Wordpress to Bridgetown
I've used WordPress for many years. It no longer suits my needs as well as it used to, so I've been investigating alternatives, inlcuding migrating this site to Bridgetown, a Ruby-based static site generator. And the switch feels principled and liberating.
Running WordPress Multisite on Hetzner with Custom Domains
After many years with Ionos, I finally made the switch to self-hosting on Hetzner. In this post, I walk through spinning up a VPS with WordPress preinstalled, hardening it with SSH keys and UFW, and configuring WordPress Multisite to serve multiple domains.
Default, Dynamic Slot Content in Rails ViewComponents
Ever wished your ViewComponent slots could have dynamic defaults? In this post, I show how I built an Alert component that automatically picks the right icon for its type, but can easily swap in a spinner or any custom icon with a single line of code.
Filtering by Association Count in Complex Models in Rails
Filtering complex associations in Rails can get tricky: built-in methods like where.associated don’t always provide efficient results. Here’s how I used a SQL subquery inside Rails scopes to make a slow page fast again.
Rails "Disable-able" Button ViewComponent / Phlex Component
Need a button that enables or disables itself in response to events? I explain how to build a reusable DisableableButton in Rails using ViewComponent (or Phlex) plus a tiny Stimulus controller—perfect for forms where you only want to allow submission once inputs are valid.
Building an LTI DeepLinking Response in Rails
DeepLinking lets your LTI tool send content back to the LMS—like inserting rich HTML into Canvas’s editor. This guide walks through persisting launch data, building a response form, rendering Rails views into JWTs, and even making the whole flow dynamic with Turbo.
Using Ruby Structs to Model API Responses
Here's a technique I use to model API responses in a simple class. This provides nice ergonomics with minimal boilerplate.
Handling LTI Launches in Rails
Learn how to set up your Rails application as an LTI Tool Provider, to handle LTI 1.3 launches from an LMS, including the OCID workflow, user authentication and what to do with the information you get from the LMS.
What's in a Canvas LMS LTI 1.3 JWT?
What’s inside an LTI 1.3 JWT? This post walks through a Canvas launch token claim by claim, so you can decode and understand the data your Rails app receives.
Parameterized Modules in Ruby
Ruby lets you use `[]` for more than arrays—and that opens the door to clever tricks like parameterized modules.
On "Layered Design for Ruby on Rails Applications"
From DDD-inspired architecture to patterns like query objects and service layers, Dementyev’s book explores how Rails apps can evolve stronger abstractions over time. Ideal for developers who want to move beyond basics and design with clarity and intent.