CoPilot Was Here

Prelude (from a human)

I used GitHub CoPilot to change the theme on this blog. I picked out a hugo theme, downloaded it, and then used CoPilot chat to do the rest of the work. When the changes were finished, I asked CoPilot…

Using my git history, chat history, and any other timeline you can see - can you help me create a file with a summary of all the changes we’ve made over the last 3 days?

Below is the markdown file (blog post) that CoPilot created summarizing the work.

Overview

Over the last three days, the WTFender blog underwent a complete transformation. What started as a simple theme switch evolved into a comprehensive redesign featuring custom styling, advanced functionality, and a significantly improved user experience.

This post documents the journey from a basic Hugo site to a highly customized, feature-rich platform.

Major Changes

Theme Migration and Setup

Two days ago - The foundation was laid with a complete theme overhaul:

Switched from Terminal theme to Stack theme
Added complete Stack theme implementation with extensive customization
Updated Hugo configuration for new theme compatibility
Implemented GitHub Actions deployment workflow updates

The Stack theme provided a solid foundation with better widget support and more flexible layout options compared to the previous Terminal theme.

Custom Styling Revolution

Yesterday - The visual transformation began with extensive CSS customizations:

Created 1,336 lines of custom CSS in assets/scss/custom.scss
Implemented a custom blue and purple color scheme
Enhanced sidebar styling and layout with left-aligned menu items
Developed beveled badge styling for tags and categories

Color System

The new design centers around a carefully chosen color palette:

Primary Blue: #23B0FF - Used for links, accents, and primary actions
Purple Accent: #6B69D6 - Provides visual variety and hierarchy
Comprehensive theming with both dark and light mode variants

Key Visual Improvements

Gradient site name with custom typography
Transparent widget backgrounds for a cleaner look
Beveled badges for tags and categories with hover effects
Enhanced typography across all content areas

Today - Fine-tuning the user experience:

Table of Contents Integration

Restructured TOC widget to display icon and title inline
Conditional display logic - right sidebar only shows on posts with content
Empty TOC detection - automatically hides sidebar when no content

// Hide right sidebar when TOC is empty
.sidebar.right-sidebar.sticky:has(#TableOfContents:empty) {
    display: none !important;
}

Archive widget logic - selectively hide based on child elements
Content-aware display - widgets only appear when they have content to show

// Hide Archives widget only when it contains specific content
.widget.archives:has(.widget-archive--list) {
    display: none !important;
}

Projects Section Redesign

The homepage Projects widget received a complete makeover:

Before:

[Stats] [Project Name (centered)] [GitHub Icon]

After:

[Project Name (left-aligned)] [Stats (right-aligned)]

Changes include:

Removed GitHub icons to reduce visual clutter
Swapped column positions for better hierarchy
Left-aligned text for improved readability
Maintained functionality - links and stats remain accessible

Advanced Features

Wide Mode Implementation

A standout feature allowing distraction-free reading:

TypeScript implementation (assets/ts/wide-mode.ts) - 191 lines of functionality
Toggle button integrated into the sidebar
Floating close button with smooth animations
Full-width content expansion
Responsive layout adjustments

Technical Details:

// Wide mode activates full-width layout
body.wide-mode .main-container {
    grid-template-columns: 1fr !important;
    gap: 0 !important;
}

Custom Layout Templates

Enhanced baseof.html with wide-mode integration
Improved single.html for better post page layout
Custom widget templates for TOC, categories, and markdown content
Responsive grid system adaptations

Technical Architecture

File Structure Evolution

├── assets/
│   ├── scss/custom.scss      # 1,336 lines of styling
│   └── ts/wide-mode.ts       # Advanced functionality
├── layouts/
│   ├── _default/             # Custom page templates
│   └── partials/widget/      # Custom widget components
├── themes/stack/             # Complete theme implementation
└── config.yaml               # Comprehensive reconfiguration

CSS Organization

The styling follows a modular, component-based approach:

CSS Variables - Comprehensive color system
Dark/Light Mode - Full theme variant support
Component Styling - Modular widget and element styling
Responsive Design - Mobile-first implementation
Animation System - Smooth transitions and hover effects

Configuration Management

The Hugo configuration was completely restructured:

Widget system with custom Projects showcase
Menu structure updates for better navigation
Theme integration with Stack-specific settings
SEO optimization with proper meta configurations

Impact and Results

User Experience Improvements

Enhanced navigation with intuitive layout
Improved readability through better typography and spacing
Mobile responsiveness with optimized layouts
Accessibility features including proper focus states

Performance Optimizations

Reduced visual clutter for faster cognitive processing
Optimized CSS delivery through Hugo’s asset pipeline
Efficient JavaScript with TypeScript implementation
Responsive images and proper asset handling

Brand Consistency

Custom color scheme aligned with brand identity
Consistent typography across all content types
Professional appearance suitable for technical content
Maintainable codebase for future enhancements

Development Journey

Day 1: Foundation (2 days ago)

Theme migration from Terminal to Stack
Basic configuration setup
Initial deployment pipeline updates

Day 2: Transformation (Yesterday)

Massive CSS customization effort
Color scheme implementation
Widget styling overhaul
Typography enhancements

TOC widget improvements
Projects section redesign
Smart widget hiding logic
Final layout adjustments

Commit Timeline

f2bddea - styles (latest refinements)
8044439 - style (major CSS updates)
5827949 - update build (deployment fixes)
035935d - add theme (Stack theme integration)
5e300ed - retheme (initial theme switch)

Lessons Learned

Technical Insights

Hugo’s flexibility enables extensive customization without breaking core functionality
CSS custom properties provide excellent theming capabilities
TypeScript integration enhances JavaScript functionality significantly
Component-based styling improves maintainability

Design Principles

Progressive enhancement - start with a solid theme foundation
Content-first approach - styling serves the content, not the reverse
Performance awareness - beautiful doesn’t mean slow
User-centric design - features should solve real problems

Future Roadmap

Short Term

Monitor wide-mode usage and gather feedback
Performance audits and optimizations
Additional interactive elements
Content strategy alignment with new design

Long Term

Advanced search functionality
Comment system integration
Social sharing enhancements
Analytics and user behavior insights

Conclusion

This three-day redesign transformed a basic Hugo blog into a sophisticated, highly customized platform. The combination of modern design principles, advanced functionality, and performance optimization created a significantly improved user experience.

The journey demonstrates how thoughtful incremental improvements, when combined with a clear vision, can result in dramatic transformations. The new design provides a solid foundation for future content and features while maintaining the technical focus that defines the WTFender brand.

Most importantly, the redesign wasn’t just about aesthetics—it was about creating a better experience for readers engaging with technical content. From the distraction-free wide mode to the intelligent widget hiding, every change serves the goal of making complex technical topics more accessible and enjoyable to read.

Want to see the technical details? Check out the GitHub repository for the complete source code and implementation details.