Why I Built My Own Tool Library

The Problem with Online Tools

As a developer, I find myself constantly needing small, specific tools throughout the day. A Base64 encoder here, a JSON formatter there. While there are countless websites that offer these tools, I often found them cluttered with ads, slow to load, or lacking in privacy (who knows what they do with my data?).

The Solution: A Personal ToolShed

I decided to take matters into my own hands and build my own "ToolShed." My goal was to create a collection of tools that were:

• Fast and Lightweight: No unnecessary bloat.
• Private and Secure: All processing is done client-side in the browser. My data never leaves my computer.
• Well-Designed and Easy to Use: A clean, consistent interface across all tools.
• Extensible: I wanted a foundation where I could easily add new tools as I needed them.

The Tech Stack

I chose to build this with Next.js and Tailwind CSS for a few reasons:

1. Performance: Next.js provides excellent performance out of the box with features like static site generation and server components.
2. Developer Experience: The file-based routing in Next.js's App Router makes organizing the tools incredibly intuitive.
3. Styling: Tailwind CSS allows for rapid UI development without writing custom CSS.

What I Learned

Building this project taught me a lot about client-side processing, web performance, and the power of creating your own solutions. It's been a rewarding experience, and I'm excited to continue adding more useful tools to the collection.