folderweb/README.md

# FolderWeb

A minimal, file-based PHP framework for publishing content that will work for decades. **Just enough, nothing more.** FolderWeb applies minimal PHP to enable modern conveniences while remaining maintainable for years or decades. No frameworks, no build tools, no JavaScript—just HTML, PHP 8.3+, and CSS. This is not a CMS with an admin panel, not a single-page application.

## Getting Started

### Requirements

- PHP 8.3 or higher
- A web server (Apache, Nginx, or PHP's built-in server)

### Quick Start

1. Clone or download this repository
2. Point your web server's document root to /content

## Development

### Creating Content

1. Create a directory for your content in the document root
2. Add one or more content files (`.md`, `.php`, or `.html`)
3. Optionally add `metadata.ini` for title, date, and summary
4. Optionally add `cover.jpg|webp` for list view thumbnails

Content is immediately accessible at the URL matching the directory path.

**Example structure:**

```
/content/
  00-welcome.php
  01-introduction.md
  about/
    00-overview.md
    01-philosophy.html
    02-technology.php
  blog/
    2025-11-01-hello-world/
      article.md
      cover.jpg
      metadata.ini
```

### Multi-File Pages

Any folder without subdirectories is a **page-type folder**. All `.md`, `.html`, and `.php` files in that folder render together as a single page in **alphanumerical order**.

This allows you to:

- Break long content into manageable sections
- Mix file formats freely (Markdown, HTML, PHP)
- Reorder sections by renaming files
- Include dynamic PHP content alongside static content

**Example:**

```
/content/
  docs/
    00-introduction.md
    01-setup.md
    02-advanced.html
    03-examples.php
```

All four files render as one page at `/docs/`, in that order.

### Folder Types

FolderWeb automatically determines how to render folders:

- **Page-type folder** (no subdirectories) → Renders all content files as a single page
- **Article-type folder** (has subdirectories) → Shows list view with links to subdirectories

### Customization

All customization lives in `custom/`:

- **Styles:** Place CSS in `custom/styles/base.css`
- **Templates:** Override defaults by placing files in `custom/templates/`
- **Fonts:** Add font files to `custom/fonts/`
- **Configuration:** Copy `app/config.ini` to `custom/config.ini` and modify

Never modify files in `/app/default/`—always override them in `custom/`.

### File-Based Routing

The folder hierarchy dictates URL structure:

- Root content files → `yoursite.com/`
- `/about/` (with content files) → `yoursite.com/about/`
- `/blog/2025-11-01-post/` (with content files) → `yoursite.com/blog/2025-11-01-post/`
- Dates in folder names are automatically extracted and formatted
- Content file names can be anything (not limited to `page.md` or `article.md`)

### Metadata

Use `metadata.ini` files for structured data:

```ini
title = "My Page Title"
date = "2025-11-01"
summary = "A brief description of the page"
```