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Web dev isn’t slowing down—and neither are we. As frameworks evolve, specs shift, and AI gets bolder (and weirder), the only constant is change. Whether you’re shipping production code or tinkering with side projects, staying sharp means staying in the loop.

In this issue of WebDevPro, we’ve distilled the week’s biggest waves—from language-level breakthroughs to toolchain upgrades and community hot takes. If it impacts how you code, we’re covering it.

Here’s what’s topping our radar this week:

Got something we should feature next time? A take that’s too real not to share? Just hit reply.

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Not every update needs fireworks—some just get the job done right. This week, the backend bunch is serving up quiet power moves: smoother installs, sleeker DX, and even a Laravel twist that takes your code desktop. Whether you’re scaling with Django, refining with Ruby, or saying a fast goodbye to Node 23.11, these releases are all about shipping smarter without breaking a sweat.

No drama, just smoother installs and slicker performance. A solid maintenance release you’ll barely notice—but definitely need.

All shine, no chaos. Your favorite language gets a quiet but classy upgrade.

Fresh APIs, slicker DX, and speed boosts that make this release an easy yes for scaling teams.

NativePHP v1 is live! Build native desktop apps with the Laravel stack you already love—no Electron, no fuss.

Node 23.11 lands with smoother performance — but it’s already hit the end-of-life countdown! Meanwhile, LTS versions like 22.x and 20.x are holding strong.

Ready to “Vibe Code” the right way?

Register your interest now, and we’ll email you as soon as booking for our event goes live!

Crack open your dev toolbox—this week’s reads come packed with spicy UI tricks, myth-busting performance tips, and unexpected gems (hello, HTML state management with no JS!). Whether you're shipping code or just geeking out, these picks bring the brains and the fun.

Business Class Kit explores no-fuss design system options that play nice with Rails—because your UI shouldn’t be a full-time job.

VectorChord debunks the myth and shows how FTS can fly when configured right.

InfoQ dives into how Amazon’s streaming giant puts Rust to work for serious scale and performance.

GrainsJS dares to ditch JS and handles state in pure HTML. Too wild not to read.y.

Smashing Magazine walks through using Manim to make crisp, delightful UI animations—with less headache than you'd expect.

Want to stay sharp and inspired? Check out our curated book recommendation that’ll keep you on top of your game!

From clean MVC to slick APIs and even Umbraco magic — this book is your backstage pass to building polished, production-ready apps with the .NET stack. Learn to ship faster, scale smarter, and wow your stakeholders with real results, not just theory.

✨ Unlock 20% off with code RWWD20 — just for you!

Luke and Garry share the story behind their new ASP.NET Core 9 cookbook — a code-first guide packed with practical recipes for building powerful Web APIs. From SignalR and HybridCache to JWT auth and .NET Aspire, it’s all about solving real-world problems with clarity, performance, and production in mind. Whether you're scaling systems or refining architecture, this book brings hands-on expertise straight from the field.

Preorder your copy here!

Know a hot AI update we missed? Send it our way—we might feature it in the next drop. 👀

WordPress Enters the Chat

Building a site just got way less painful. WordPress.com now lets you launch a full website using a simple chat prompt—no templates, no drag-and-drop, no sweat.

Here’s the deal:

• Just type something like “make a site for my coffee shop”—AI does the rest.

• You can edit content by chatting with the bot (or tweak it manually).

• It only works for new sites (for now), but it’s great for rapid prototyping.

WordPress just joined the AI site-builder race—and it’s aiming straight at Wix and Squarespace. If you build websites, this is one to watch.

PostgreSQL full-text search isn’t slow—if you do it right

Think full-text search in PostgreSQL is sluggish? Think again. With the right setup—precomputed tsvector columns, proper indexing, and smart query structuring—Postgres can deliver lightning-fast text search at scale. It’s all about shifting the work from query time to write time. If you’re still calling to_tsvector() in every SELECT, it’s time for an upgrade.

Frameworks are shifting, AI is building websites, and devs are still debating what “modern” really means. Whether you’re prototyping with AI or optimizing for the edge, this week’s drops had something for every corner of the stack.

Seen a tool, take, or trend we missed? Hit reply—we’re always listening.

Catch you next week. ✌️

Cheers!

Kinnari Chohan,

Editor-in-chief