This repository is the source code for Batsov.com, a personal blog built on Jekyll and hosted on GitHub Pages, making it a working example of a minimal static blog.
What is Batsov.com?
Batsov.com is an open-source Jekyll project that powers the personal blog at batsov.com. It takes Markdown posts and Jekyll configuration as input and generates a fully static HTML site suitable for hosting on GitHub Pages. The repository is the actual source code of a live blog, maintained as a simple Jekyll setup, and it invites community contributions via pull requests.
Key Features
- Jekyll static site generator — The blog uses Jekyll, a Ruby-based tool that transforms Markdown and Liquid templates into a plain HTML website, requiring no server-side database.
- GitHub Pages deployment — The site is configured to run on GitHub Pages, which provides free hosting directly from a Git repository.
- Personal blog structure — It includes the layout and content structure typical for a blog, with posts written in Markdown.
- Open-source collaboration — The repository is open for pull requests addressing typos, bad grammar, and visual glitches, making it easy for others to contribute improvements.
- Simple and lightweight — As described by the author, it is a simple Jekyll-powered site, implying a lean codebase with minimal dependencies.
Who is it for?
- Developers wanting a personal blog — They can fork this repository and adapt it to publish their own technical writing under their own domain.
- Jekyll beginners — The codebase serves as a real-world, minimal example of how Jekyll organizes layouts, includes, and configuration.
- GitHub Pages users — Anyone looking to host a blog for free on GitHub Pages can study or reuse this setup.
Use cases
- Personal bloggers: Publish articles by writing Markdown files and committing them to the repository; GitHub Pages rebuilds the site automatically.
- Website developers: Use the codebase as a reference to set up a similar Jekyll site with custom domain mapping.
- Open-source contributors: Send pull requests to fix typos, grammar, or visual issues, practicing collaborative workflows on a real project.
How does this template work?
Because it is a Jekyll site, working with it follows the standard Jekyll workflow: clone the repository, install Jekyll and its dependencies, run the local development server with jekyll serve, and preview the site at http://localhost:4000. For production, committing changes to the configured branch triggers GitHub Pages to build and deploy the static output automatically.
FAQ
Is Batsov.com free to use?
Yes, the source code is available in a public repository, so anyone can view, fork, and reuse it. There are no licensing fees for using the code itself, and hosting on GitHub Pages is free for public repositories.
What does the Batsov.com template do?
It is a complete static blog generator. You write posts in Markdown, and Jekyll converts them into a static HTML site. The template includes the configuration and structure originally used for the live blog at batsov.com.
Can I customize the design?
Yes. Since the site uses Jekyll's theming system, you can edit the HTML layouts, CSS, and Liquid includes directly in the repository. The author describes the site as simple, so the design is likely minimal and easy to modify.
