How I Built This Portfolio in Pure PHP

The site you're currently reading isn't built on any framework. It stores data in JSON files, and all content can be modified from an administrative panel. This was a conscious decision: I wanted to understand every file I upload to the server.

What's Under the Hood

Two language versions, server-side selected light and dark mode, a client portal with an access code, a blog, a contact form that converts messages into support tickets, and a chat connected to a language model.

What I Learned

That most of the time is consumed by details no one thinks about at the start: browser cache after uploading a new stylesheet, Polish characters where extensions are missing, and data backups before every deployment.

And that your own project is the best proving ground: no one will report bugs for you, so you learn to find them yourself.