Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats

978: Should A New Coder Use AI?

Wes and Scott answer your questions about AI agents, learning to code with AI, pagination patterns, skilling up from outdated tech stacks, balancing side projects with family life, real-world hacking attempts, and more! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:39 Are devs really running multiple AI agents at once? Scott’s Tweet 09:41 Brought to you by Sentry.io 12:45 What is pagination and why do websites use it? 18:17 Should beginners use AI while learning to code? 30:24 The real-world skills CS degrees don’t teach you 35:59 Someone tried to hack Syntax 38:12 How Wes and Scott became co-hosts 42:00 Moving from junior to mid-level when your skills are outdated 45:42 How do you balance time for side projects, life, and family 52:45 Building a ChatGPT-style RAG search for your resume 56:15 Why Chad Whitacre videos were on the Syntax YouTube channel Chad’s YouTube Channel 58:44 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: Trmnl Wes: RYOBI Soldering Iron Shameless Plugs Syntax YouTube Channel Hit us up on Socials! Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads

977: We built a CSS Challenge platform

Scott and Wes break down how they built SynHax, the real-time CSS Battle app powering the upcoming Mad CSS tournament. From SvelteKit and Zero to diffing algorithms, sync conflicts, and a last-minute hackweek glow-up, this one’s a deep dive into shipping ambitious web apps fast. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:50 March Mad CSS Tournament. 03:19 Brought to you by Sentry.io. 03:59 What the heck is a CSS Battle? 05:34 The tech stack. 06:30 Svelte Kit. 06:44 Zero Sync. Zero Docs Zero Svelte. 07:32 Drizzle. 07:58 Supabase. 08:23 Graffiti. 10:45 Sync Server. 12:10 Cloudflare Workers. 12:23 Local File System. 13:26 How Zero Works. 13:48 Zero Sync Client. 15:39 API server. 19:34 Dealing with states and conflicts. 24:25 The Hackweek Project. 25:29 The Diffing Algorithm. 35:22 The bugs. Hit us up on Socials! Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads

976: Pi - The AI Harness That Powers OpenClaw W/ Armin Ronacher & Mario Zechner

Wes and Scott talk with Armin Ronacher and Mario Zechner about PI, a minimalist agent harness powering tools like OpenClaw. They unpack why Bash is “all you need,” the risks of agents, workflow adaptability, and where AI coding agents are actually headed. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 03:28 What is Pi, and why does it matter? OpenClaw 05:54 What do we actually mean by “agents”? 11:04 Prompt injection: how LLMs get tricked 14:19 Is Claude Cowork actually secure? 22:01 How Armin and Mario use agents day to day 26:37 Brought to you by Sentry.io 27:25 Memory and search: teaching agents to remember 33:04 Do coding agents even need memory? 34:36 “Bash is all you need” 37:21 Adding power: how agents learn new tricks 47:02 Tools and models Armin and Mario are using right now 54:15 Sick picks + shameless plugs Sick Picks Mario: Cards for Ukraine Armin: Pro-Ject Audio Turntable Shameless Plugs Armin: Thorsten Ball Newsletter Simon Willison Hit us up on Socials! Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads

975: What’s Missing From the Web Platform?

Scott and Wes run through their wishlist for the web platform, digging into the UI primitives, DOM APIs, and browser features they wish existed (or didn’t suck). From better form controls and drag-and-drop to native reactivity, CSS ideas, and future-facing APIs, it’s a big-picture chat on what the web could be. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! Wes Tweet 00:39 Exploring What’s Missing from the Web Platform 02:26 Enhancing DOM Primitives for Better User Experience 03:59 Multi-select + Combobox. Open-UI 04:49 Date Picker. Thibault Denis Tweet 07:18 Tabs. 08:01 Image + File Upload. 09:08 Toggles. 10:23 Native Drag and Drop that doesn’t suck. 12:03 Syntax wishlist. 12:06 Type Annotations. 15:07 Pipe Operator. 16:33 APIs We Wish to See on the Web 18:31 Brought to you by Sentry.io 19:51 Identity. 21:33 getElementByText() 24:09 Native Reactive DOM. Templating in JavaScript. 24:48 Sync Protocol. 25:52 Virtualization that doesn’t suck. 27:40 Put, Patch, and Delete on forms. Ollie Williams Tweet SnorklTV Tweet 28:55 Text metrics: get bounding box of individual characters. 29:42 Lower Level Connections. 29:50 Bluetooth API. 30:47 Sockets. 31:29 NFC + RFID. 34:34 Things we want in CSS. 34:40 Specify transition speed. 35:24 CSS Strict Mode. 36:25 Safari moving to Chromium. 36:37 The Need for Diverse Browser Engines 37:48 AI Access. 44:49 Other APIs 46:59 Qwen TTS 48:07 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: Monarch Wes: Slonik Headlamp Shameless Plugs Scott: Syntax on YouTube Hit us up on Socials! Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads

974: Clawdbot (Moltbot), Agents and the Age of Personal Software

Wes and Scott talk about building hyper-specific personal software with AI. They explore personal agents, home automation, JSON-as-a-database, and how LLMs unlock fast, custom apps that reduce friction and replace bloated SaaS. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:53 What is personal software (and why it matters) 04:49 Using AI agents to build hyper-specific apps for yourself Clawdbot ClawdHub 13:43 Supercharging your dev workflow with Tailscale 19:06 Privacy when working with LLMs MLX-Audio 21:39 Brought to you by Sentry.io 22:21 Real-world personal app ideas 39:14 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: FTPManager Wes: Roku Streaming Stick Shameless Plugs Syntax YouTube Channel Hit us up on Socials! Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads