TechDug is built for one kind of writing: the post that explains how something actually works, step by step, with the code and the caveats included. Everything below exists to make that kind of post easier to write and easier to follow. The list is short because the platform is small, and it is meant to be.
Layer 01
Your blog
One address per author, organised your way.
A home at your handle
Every author writes at
/your-handle/. That page is your blog’s front door: portrait, short bio, an optional link to your own website and the full list of what you have published.A “start here” section
Put a short introduction or a reading order at the top of your blog, so a new reader knows which post to open first.
Categories you define
Group posts into categories of your own, such as a language, a tool or a series. Each category gets its own page.
Your own feed
Readers can follow you at
/your-handle/feed.xmlin any RSS reader, without creating an account anywhere.
Layer 02
Technical posts
Formatting that keeps up with the content.
Code blocks that stay readable
Code is set in a monospaced face on a dark panel, keeps its indentation and scrolls sideways instead of wrapping. With JavaScript on, each block has a copy button.
Inline code and keys
Short commands, file names and shortcuts get their own styling inside a sentence, so
npm installnever blends into the prose.Numbered sections and contents
The main sections of a post are numbered like steps, and long posts get a table of contents that links to each one.
Images hosted here
Screenshots and diagrams are stored on the site itself. A cover image is optional; posts without one get a clean text-first header.
Topics
Tag a post and it appears on a topic page alongside posts on the same subject by other authors.
Accented text
Vietnamese and other accented languages display correctly in headings, body text, code comments and replies.
Layer 03
Reading
Free, open and fast.
No account to read
Every published post is public. Nothing to sign up for and no wall to click through first.
Plain HTML pages
Pages are rendered on the server as HTML and CSS. They load quickly, work on slow connections and do not need JavaScript.
Made for small screens
Layouts collapse to a single readable column on a phone. Wide code blocks scroll on their own instead of breaking the page.
A feed for everything
Prefer the whole site in one place?
/feed.xmllists new posts from every author.
Layer 04
Comments
A name is enough. A moderator reads every one.
No account, no email
Readers reply with a name and a comment. That is all the form asks for.
Reviewed first
Guest comments are held until a moderator approves them, and unapproved comments are deleted automatically after 30 days.
Layer 05
Left out
Deliberately, and for good.
No advertising
Nothing on the page competes with the explanation you came for.
No analytics or tracking pixels
We do not measure readers or follow them around the site.
No third-party scripts
The only scripts on a page are the site’s own small ones.
No cookies for readers
Reading and commenting set no cookies. Only administrators get a session cookie when they sign in.
Writing on TechDug
Author accounts are by invitation; there is no public sign-up. Authors keep ownership of everything they publish.