Dev tools · September 15, 2025
Dagger.js – A buildless, runtime-only JavaScript micro-framework
TL;DR: dagger.js is a buildless, runtime-only micro-framework that plays nicely with native Web Components. It uses HTML-first directives (e.g. +click, +load) so you can ship a page by dropping a single from a CDN—no bundlers, no compile step. Why I built it Modern stacks are powerful but often heavy: bundlers, compile steps, framework DSLs, local CLIs. For internal tools, small apps, and edge/serverless deployments, I wanted something you can view-source, paste into a page, and ship. What it is: Runtime-only: no build or VDOM compile; hydrate behaviors directly on HTML. HTML…
In plain words
Dagger.js is a buildless, runtime-only JavaScript micro-framework designed for developers building internal tools, small applications, and serverless deployments. It uses HTML-first directives like +click and +load to add interactivity without requiring bundlers or compilation steps. The framework works directly with native Web Components and can be loaded from a CDN as a single script tag, allowing developers to view and edit source code directly in the browser.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
In the maker’s words, at launch
TL;DR: dagger.js is a buildless, runtime-only micro-framework that plays nicely with native Web Components. It uses HTML-first directives (e.g. +click, +load) so you can ship a page by dropping a single <script> from a CDN—no bundlers, no compile step. Why I built it Modern stacks are powerful but often heavy: bundlers, compile steps, framework DSLs, local CLIs. For internal tools, small apps, and edge/serverless deployments, I wanted something you can view-source, paste into a page, and ship. What it is: Runtime-only: no build or VDOM compile; hydrate behaviors directly on HTML. HTML directives: e.g. +click, lifecycle +load / +loaded / +unload / +unloaded. Zero APIs: dagger.js works in pure declarative mode, modules and directives provide everything you need to build your application. Web-Components-first: works alongside Custom Elements; keep concerns local. Distributed modules: load small, focused script modules via CDN. Progressive enhancement: the page renders without a build step. Use cases: Admin panels & dashboards that don’t warrant a full toolchain Embed widgets, docs-sites with interactive bits Edge/serverless apps where cold start and simplicity matter Links GitHub: https://github.com/dagger8224/dagger.js Docs/Guide: https://daggerjs.org Examples: https://codepen.io/dagger8224/pens I’d love feedback on edge-cases, and where it breaks. Happy to answer tough questions here.
More dev tools this month
the category →
Open-source GTM skills for technical founders
Dev tools · 29d ago · gtmcofounder.com
OpenTrailPaper is open-source bike computer firmware for the LilyGO T5S3 4.7" E-Paper PRO. It supports offline maps, GPX routes, FIT recording and Bluetooth sensors.
Dev tools · 2d ago · opentrailpaper.com
Launched alongside, September 2025
the whole month →
- AS
Commerce · Sep 2025 · anycrap.shop
- TE
I made a built-from scratch Wayland Compositor to display any GUI app* in the terminal! I think there is a lot of unexplored potential in custom Wayland compositors, a lot of really cool things you can embed existing applications into! So, I started with embedding apps into the terminal because that is the easiest input/output (output is just utf-8 and I use the great `chafa` library for that, and I just read from stdin for the input). If you have any other ideas for cool Wayland compositors, let me know. I purposedly wrote 80% the app in Typescript to appeal to the most developers and…
Dev tools · Sep 2025 · github.com
- IR
Years ago I stumbled across a basic version of this concept and it stuck with me. I knew if I was ever going to take on such a project, it would need to be flawless, but without coding experience it was just another idea that would never happen. By the end of 2024, as AI coding tools exploded everywhere, I finally had a way to make it real. I started from zero knowledge and spent months collaborating with AI agents as a learning experience. Every pixel and every function went through me. The AI translated what I asked for into code, but every decision was human. I didn't use existing OS…
AI · Sep 2025 · mitchivin.com
