Local Web
A framework for running my web applications as a connected private collection, with shared navigation and styling, managed updates, and portable exports.
Sole developer · July 2026–presentView on GitHub (opens in a new tab)Open source. The catalogue screenshot uses fictional example applications.
What it does
- Bring independently built applications together in one private catalogue on a Mac.
- Provide shared navigation, light and dark modes, and reusable interface components.
- Build and deploy versioned releases, check their health, and support rollback when an update fails.
- Export application context and self-contained interactive snapshots for use outside the hosted app.
The challenge
I wanted to develop web apps quickly with AI and have them running and ready to use with as little setup as possible. I had found myself running multiple individual web servers, each with its own setup to manage. I built Local Web to give new apps a shared starting point and a consistent way to launch and maintain them. I also built skills so coding agents could work within that framework.
What I learned
I learned that a shared framework needs to make the repeated work easier while leaving room for different kinds of app. Plotter needed a full-screen map; dashboards and trackers needed different layouts. Using the apps also exposed limits in my original idea: access from home was too restrictive, so I added Tailscale, and I wanted to take their information into AI conversations, so I added exports. Those practical needs helped me decide what belonged in the framework. It has made me think more about the foundations that help an AI-built app become something I can keep using and developing.
Built with
- Python
- TypeScript
- React
- Vite
- Caddy
- macOS LaunchAgents