I was looking back at my workflow recently, and I realized a major shift.
A year ago, if I had an idea for a quick UI interaction, a complex CSS layout, or just wanted to test a native JavaScript function, I would immediately open VS Code. I’d scaffold a dummy folder, run a quick setup script, and start a local server.
Lately, I've completely stopped doing that. I found that the setup time was killing my momentum for ideas that only took 3 minutes to actually code.
Now, I strictly isolate my ideation. I use a browser IDE to write the raw HTML, CSS, and JS, validate the visual output instantly, and only move it to my local repository if the idea actually works. (I've been building NitroIDE to serve as exactly this kind of fast, distraction-free frontend sandbox).
But I'm curious about how the rest of the community handles this.
Where do you test tiny frontend ideas?
Do you still spin up a temporary folder in VS Code? Do you reach for a CodePen alternative? Do you sketch it on paper or Figma first?
Let’s discuss how we manage the very first step of the development process.