Abstract

Website authors and web developers constantly reinvent the wheel. Thousands of developers annually spend millions of hours building sites from scratch, even though most websites have similar function and structure to other sites. Developers don't easily benefit from one another's work because most code is hidden, uncopyable, on the server.

Unlike traditional websites, all code and content files in LimeBits sites are externally visible, easily copyable, and customizable. Authors and developers browse existing, open-source websites hosted on LimeBits, find one that already works with desired features, customize a copy of it to suit, deploy it, and thereby share it back to the community. Sites are usually customized and extended, rather than built from scratch.

The LimeBits server is a passive storage device, driven by browser JavaScript. Authors and developers do no server-side programming, installation, or configuration. Websites on LimeBits store data and state via JavaScript using the standard WebDAV (REST-style) protocol. Read/write access controls and versioning are available.

LimeBits is a public platform for website development, hosting, and sharing. It's currently in alpha deployment and is open for improvement and public participation.

Jonathan A. Marshall is a computer scientist and senior software developer interested in expanding the use and acceptance of free/open-source ethics and technologies.