Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats

940: Picking a Fullstack Stack, Is Next.js Too Complex? Services vs Self-Hosted + More

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Sep 24, 2025
Wes and Scott explore the best Node.js backends for 2025, including Polka and Fastify. They delve into managing database indexes before they become issues and share effective real-world workflows for developers. Discussion shifts to tackling burnout with novelty and side projects. Tips on choosing tech stacks for small CMS projects and dealing with toxic bosses add depth. They also debate whether GraphQL is still relevant against REST and RPC, and question Vercel's influence on web development.
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ADVICE

Prefer Standards-Based Node Frameworks

  • Use modern web-request/web-response frameworks like Hono or H3 for CRUD Node.js backends.
  • They follow standards so handlers move easily between runtimes and meta-frameworks.
INSIGHT

Index Based On Actual Queries

  • Design database indexes based on the queries you actually run, not hypothetical ones.
  • Missing indexes show up as slow queries and are often fixed quickly once detected.
ADVICE

Start With DB and Auth Then Build Features

  • For CRUD apps, install core packages then define your database and auth first.
  • Build features one-by-one, implementing backend and frontend together for each feature.
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