Software alternatives

Lesser-known first to keep the list interesting

• LeftWM - a window manager
• Caddy - a web server with automatic HTTPs and refreshingly simple configuration
• Helix - a text editor
• Zellij - tmux alternative, batteries included
• Nu - cross-platform shell with a fresh approach to streams & redirections
• Zola - a static site generator, which powers this website
• Paru - AUR helper for all Arch folks
• Neovide - neovim client with eye-candy animations
• Alacritty - a terminal emulator
• Wezterm - another terminal emulator
• fd - unix find but actually usable without having to read man each time

I encourage you to compare the documentation of the software from this list with their classic alternatives, just to see how important good documentation is.

Justification/Philosophy

Most of the software that powers our devices runs on C, C++ and Java. I do not mean to criticise those languages, as they were a great improvement for the programming community, opening new and exciting paths to better software. However, during the last 2 decades, new languages have emerged, fulfilling the need for:

• Built-in tools for easy code reuse (package/library management)
• Memory safety
• Speed & resource efficiency
• Improved approach to macros and other metaprogramming-related aspects
• Integrated documentation builders (cargo doc as a prime example)