Gridster is a Jekyll theme in material design, created by DigitalMind, that focuses on multimedia content by providing dedicated post types for video, audio, image, and gallery posts. The theme runs on Jekyll static sites and includes a Grunt-based build process that compiles, concatenates, and minifies assets, with optional deployment tasks. Its GitHub repository describes it as "a jekyll theme in material design" and carries 140 stars.
What is Gridster?
Gridster is a Jekyll theme that turns Markdown post files into distinct multimedia presentations: video posts, audio posts, image posts, and gallery posts. It accepts content authored as Markdown files and configuration via a Jekyll config, and outputs a static website. The theme is distributed through its GitHub repository and is a product of DigitalMind, who also provide the theme's documentation at gridster.digitalmind.ch.
Key Features
- Custom post types — Gridster includes built-in post types for video, audio, image, and gallery content, giving each media format its own layout.
- Material design styling — The theme uses Google's material design language for a clean, card-based visual style.
- Grunt build tasks — A Grunt configuration ships with the theme and includes tasks to compile, concatenate, minify, and deploy the site.
- Extensive documentation — The theme's documentation covers installing dependencies, customizing the theme with variables, creating posts, publishing, and hosting on GitHub Pages with plugins.
- Customization variables — A large set of variables lets users change site configuration and appearance without editing theme source files.
- Multiple layouts — The theme offers a variety of preset layouts, selectable by the user, to change how the site displays content.
- Feedback channel — Users can open issues on the theme's GitHub page for problems or feature requests, or contact DigitalMind directly through their website.
Who is it for?
- Multimedia bloggers — Bloggers who regularly publish videos, podcasts, photo essays, or galleries can use Gridster's dedicated post types to display each format correctly.
- Photographers and videographers — Creators who want a portfolio for images and video reels can leverage the image, gallery, and video post types.
- Jekyll developers — Developers who prefer Jekyll's static-site workflow and want an existing material-design theme with a Grunt automation toolchain.
- GitHub Pages users — Site owners who plan to host on GitHub Pages and want documentation that covers plugin support and deployment.
What can you do with Gridster?
- Publish a video post: Create a Markdown post and assign the video post type to show a video-focused layout.
- Create an audio post: Use the audio post type for podcasts, music, or other audio content.
- Build an image gallery: Populate the gallery post type with multiple images to produce a gallery view.
- Customize the site: Set theme variables to control site details such as title, navigation, and layout choices.
- Automate site builds: Run the included Grunt tasks to compile assets, minify output, and even deploy the site to a remote host.
How does Gridster work?
Gridster works as a standard Jekyll theme: install the theme, configure settings through the Jekyll config, and add posts as Markdown files that specify their post type. Grunt tasks handle asset processing, and the documentation walks through each step from dependency installation to deploying on GitHub Pages.
FAQ
Is Gridster free?
Gridster lives on GitHub as a public repository, and the page presents no pricing information or premium tier. The typical license for such Jekyll themes allows free use, but check the repository's license for exact terms.
How do I install Gridster?
According to the documentation, installation involves setting up the theme's dependencies, adding the theme to your Jekyll site, and running the included Grunt tasks. The docs describe the process step by step.
Does Gridster support video and audio posts?
Yes, Gridster explicitly includes post types for video, audio, image, and gallery content, each with its own layout.
Can I host a Gridster site on GitHub Pages?
Yes, the documentation includes instructions for hosting on GitHub Pages, including how to work with plugins on the platform.
