972: These Things Make Your App Feel Like Crap on Mobile

Wes and Scott talk about why mobile web apps often feel “janky” compared to native—and how to fix it. They cover input zooming, accidental horizontal scroll, pointer/user-select quirks, frame rate consistency, full-page refreshes, and more. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:11 Brought to you by Sentry.io 02:57 Zooming inputs 06:11 Horizontal scrolling 08:49 Proper use of pointer-events: none, and user-select: none 11:27 Allowing zoom on everything 16:37 Cleaning up the “jank” 19:48 Full page refresh 24:05 Slow loading times 29:50 Cumulative layout shift 32:47 Address bars and viewport units Dynamic Viewport Units 35:34 Full-width scroll traps 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

Is Stack Overflow actually dying, and what does that mean in an AI-driven dev world? Scott and Wes break down the latest web dev news, from Firefox’s AI crossroads and Apple’s browser engine changes to new tools, docs, and spicy browser updates. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 02:36 Stack Overflow is Officially Dead 05:40 AI’s Impact on Software Development 07:56 Brought to you by Sentry.io 08:20 Micro QuickJS for Embedded Systems 13:03 Open Workers: A Cloudflare Alternative 20:09 React Aria has new Docs 24:12 Firefox and the AI Dilemma The Mozilla Announcement 31:11 Apple’s Browser Engine Changes Using alternative browser engines in Japan. 36:12 Fractured JSON for Better Readability 37:45 New Chrome Permissions Dialogue Chrome Network Access 41:15 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: TRMNL E-Ink Display Wes: ACEBOTT 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

Wes and Scott answer your questions about whether Git GUIs beat the terminal, balancing accessibility with experimental web projects, blocking malicious traffic, smart home setups, why Anthropic bought Bun, navigating tricky team dynamics, and more! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:51 Why did Anthropic buy Bun? 07:33 Should you use Git GUIs or the terminal? lazygit 12:54 How to make better coding videos v_framer Recut DaVinci Resolve Shure MV7+ 20:31 How do you handle a difficult dev teammate? 24:16 Brought to you by Sentry.io 24:41 Creative and experimental code vs accessible code Using luminance instead of lightness Color contrast checker Auto color 31:51 Smart home setups we actually use 35:37 How do you block bad bots and ISPs? Bad ASN list 38:02 What is SAP UI and why is it everywhere? SAP UI5 Demo Kit 41:28 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: Inside Archaeology Wes: ProfessorBoots 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

Scott and Wes sit down with Dimitri Mitropoulos to explore the wild edges of TypeScript—from running Doom in the type system to building tools like Typeslayer. They dig into Turing-complete types, performance limits, and what the future might hold for TypeScript and programming languages as a whole. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:27 Dimitri Mitropoulos Introduction 01:29 What is Doom in TypeScript? 03:10 TypeScript Types and Turing Completeness 04:06 Project Overview and Challenges 04:57 ASCII Art and Visual Representation 06:50 Performance Issues with TypeScript 09:27 Brought to you by Sentry.io 09:51 Typeslayer Tool Introduction 16:19 Building in Tauri 20:54 Challenges around packaging 24:03 Future of TypeScript and AI 27:40 Is the Go-based compiler significantly faster? TSperf 30:23 Should there be something to follow Typescript? 36:27 Staying up to date with WASM. 37:08 SquiggleConf Overview 38:26 Hosting a conference 40:45 What are your thoughts on Zig? 45:07 Vibe coding as an end goal 50:01 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Dimitri: pullfrog Shameless Plugs Dimitri: Michigan TypeScript 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

Wes and Scott talk about setting realistic goals for the new year, building habits through small, sustainable changes, creating systems that actually stick, and why incremental progress beats big resolutions every time. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:26 Wes: Stand more 06:55 Wes: Learn to wake up early 10:04 Scott: Embrace daily TODOs Tweek 14:18 Brought to you by Sentry.io 14:43 Wes: Better email management 19:14 Scott: Become more minimal 22:13 Wes: Get faster at typing 26:55 Scott: Listen to more self-help books 30:18 Scott: Track long-term habits 31:36 Scott (and Wes): Ship more things 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

Wes and Scott talk about their bold predictions for web development in 2026, from WebGPU-powered design and modern CSS breakthroughs to JavaScript standards, AI-driven tooling, security risks, the future of frameworks, workflows, and more! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 00:49 WebGPU and 3D experiences will finally take off Lando Norris 01:30 Web design will make a comeback Raycast shaders.com 04:03 Light mode returns (yes, really) 07:06 Modern CSS standards are about to have a huge year CSS Wrapped Graffiti 13:15 Will the Temporal API finally ship everywhere in 2026? 14:18 The rise of the standard stack 16:18 Are we headed toward standardized RPC? 19:41 What’s next (and what’s not) for React 21:07 Why we’ll see more security failures in web dev 22:35 SvelteKit 3 lands in 2026 22:53 Where developer tooling is headed next Oxc Biome 26:44 More big acquisitions Anthropic Bun 28:02 2026: the year of durable compute 30:57 Frameworks will matter less as AI gets better 33:34 End-to-end AI workflows become the norm 36:04 Brought to you by Sentry.io 37:21 Personalized software for everyday people 39:11 MCP and MCP UI will pop 42:24 Developer skills will fall off 46:20 Crappy software will continue 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

Wes and Scott revisit their 2025 web development predictions, grading hits and misses across AI, browsers, frameworks, CSS, and tooling. From Temporal and AI coding agents to React, Vite, and vanilla CSS, they reflect on what actually changed, what stalled, and what it all means heading into 2026. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 866: 2025 Web Development Predictions 01:26 Temporal API will ship in the browser 03:33 On-device AI becomes common 06:14 WebGPU unlocks fast local machine learning TypeGPU 07:10 Models will plateau 10:32 Is there an actual use case for video and photo gen AI? 13:27 Text to UI tools get really good 16:25 Framework choice will matter less 18:53 Web components in Standard Stack, Web Awesome takes off 21:37 AI browsers and Copilot Workspace-style tools will become normal 22:56 AI browsera will become inevitable, OpenAI will launch a browser 27:51 Relative color will feel fully “safe to use” 29:02 Vanilla CSS will make a comeback 30:33 Brought to you by Sentry.io 30:58 CSS mixins and functions spec solidifies CSS Custom Functions and Mixins Module Level 1 33:25 Container style queries will ship everywhere CSS if statements 35:40 Vertical centering jokes will stubbornly persist 36:20 VS Code will reach feature parity with Cursor 38:47 More VS Code forks will appear 39:46 React Compiler drops Babel 40:34 React server components will pop 42:17 Remix re-emerges as something new 43:17 React Native will have its time 44:21 TanStack Start and Tanstack will pop 45:46 SvelteKit gets more granular data loading 46:06 Local first apps will take off 46:43 Bun keeps doing “wild but loved” non-standard features, Bun will launch a platform-as-a-service 48:22 Vite stays king 51:07 Laravel will release a CMS 52:44 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: DARKBEAM Flashlight UV Black Light Wes: WOOZOO Fan 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

Scott and Wes break down the biggest web platform features that reached Baseline in 2025, separating the genuinely useful APIs from the niche and forgettable ones. From same-document view transitions and the Popover API to Promise.try, content-visibility, and modern CSS goodies, they share what’s actually ready to use today. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:37 24 new web APIs that reached baseline in 2025. 01:49 Same-document view transitions for single-page applications. 05:28 abs() 08:22 Brought to you by Sentry.io. 09:20 JSON Module Scripts. 10:10 Popover API. 13:07 Base64 to UInt8Array. Better Binary Batter Mixing 16:11 @starting-style Scott’s A CSS Only Accordion with Scott’s Mobile Nav 17:39 allow-discrete 21:31 Promise.try 22:51 content-visibility 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

In this potluck episode of Syntax, Wes and Scott answer your questions about keyboard shortcuts, choosing frameworks in the age of AI, markdown vs CMSs, backup strategies, moving countries for work, staying relevant as a developer, and more! Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 02:28 Do keyboard shortcuts actually improve productivity? Hyperkey 08:41 What is Error Lens, and why use it? Ep 956: Should I Keep Using WordPress? 11:44 How Scott is using a Svelte 5 service worker 14:52 Does tech stack choice still matter with AI coding? Ep 951: A first look at Remix 3 20:15 What stack should you choose for a greenfield SaaS? 22:38 What’s the right stack for a band website? 28:24 Is moving countries for work worth the tradeoff? 34:59 Brought to you by Sentry.io 36:16 How should you manage commits with AI tools? 40:50 Is programming still a good career in the AI era? 47:03 How should you back up large files and media? Ep 949: Web Dev HORROR Stories + Spooky Trivia! (Spooky Stories Pt. 1) Ep 962: The Home Server / Synology Show 53:29 What backup setup works for small teams and clients? 55:14 How should you store sensitive files safely? 58:07 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Scott: Philips LED Ultra Definition Wes: LEGO Builder App 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

Scott and Wes chat with YouTuber and security consultant Matt Brown about breaking into IoT devices, extracting firmware, and decoding the hidden tech inside everyday gadgets. Matt shares his methods, the legal boundaries, and the wild stories behind his most interesting hacks. Show Notes 00:00 Welcome to Syntax! 01:21 Curiosity in Hacking 03:28 Understanding IoT Devices 07:15 Brought to you by Sentry.io. 07:40 Linux vs Microcontrollers 10:11 UART Console Access 13:56 Firmware Extraction Techniques 14:19 Guessing Usernames and Passwords 19:22 Extracting Password Hashes 23:15 Legal Considerations in Hacking 30:06 Where does the inspiration come from? 31:20 Using Logic Analyzers 37:45 CAN Protocol in Automotive 45:42 Influence of Lewis Rossman 54:05 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs Sick Picks Matt: Key Person of Influence Shameless Plugs Matt:Matt Brown on YouTube, Brown Fine Security 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