nowfound

Life & fun · May 1, 2020

RF

RegEx for Regular Folk – A visual, example-based introduction

RegEx for Regular Folk – A visual, example-based introduction launched on May 1, 2020 with 502 votes, #20 of 4,813 launches that month and more than 99% of that year's launches. The site was still online in September 2026, 6 years on.

In plain words

RegEx for Regular Folk is a visual, example-based guide to regular expressions designed for beginners. Launched in 2020, it breaks down regex concepts using practical examples rather than technical jargon, making the topic accessible to people without programming backgrounds. The resource uses visual explanations to help learners understand pattern matching and text search fundamentals.

written from the facts on this page · September 2026

From the sources

This is an experimental “book” about regular expressions. It is largely visual and example-based , as opposed to most regex resources I found while I was learning. I also attempted to choose test cases that highlight some common gotchas. I think it’ll be worth your time. This book’s intended audience is regex beginners . Some programming experience is assumed. It does not go into advanced regex concepts like engine backtracking and recursive regexes—at least not at the moment. This is also an open source project , and contributions are welcome. Translations are welcome, as long as they adhere to the license . You can choose to publish your translation separately, but we welcome translations…from refrf.shreyasminocha.me

Does a similar job

all alternatives →
  • Regex Cheatsheet2020 · ihateregex.io · ▲499

    A modern regular expression playground with live matching, visual railroad diagrams, rich notes, and easy sharing.

  • Regex library2022 · uibakery.io · ▲276

    A curated list of most commonly used regular expressions

  • RegexLearn2021 · regexlearn.com · ▲328

    Learn RegEx step by step, from zero to advanced

  • RE
    Regular expression compilation visualized2021 · compiler.org · ▲219
  • i Hate Regex2020 · ihateregex.io · ▲477

    regex cheatsheet for the haters

  • Regex.ai – AI-powered regular expression generator2023 · regex.ai · ▲294

    Regex.ai is an AI-powered tool that generates regular expressions. It can accurately generate regular expressions that match specific patterns in text with precision. Whether you're a novice or an expert, Regex.ai's intuitive interface makes it easy to input sample text and generate complex regular expressions quickly and efficiently. Overall, Regex.ai is a game-changer that will save you time and streamline your workflow.

More life & fun this month

the category →

Source: Show HN post ↗

Launched alongside, May 2020

the whole month →
  • Blush▲1,462

    Illustrations for everyone

    Dev tools · 2020 · blush.design

  • Animation of the SHA-256 hash function in your terminal. - in3rsha/sha256-animation

    Dev tools · 2020 · github.com

  • This Word Does Not Exist uses an artificial intelligence model named GPT-2 to invent new English words.

    AI · 2020 · thisworddoesnotexist.com

  • P3

    Life & fun · 2020 · leeoniya.github.io

  • Untools▲783

    Hand-picked tools for better thinking

    Work · 2020 · untools.co

  • Improve your website copy based on data from your audience

    Growth · 2020 · wynter.com