DEV Community: sumit sharma

I Needed a Family Tree for Documentation Work, So I Built a Vanshavali Builder

sumit sharma — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 10:22:58 +0000

Sometimes the best project ideas don't come from startup brainstorming sessions. They come from real-life frustrations.

Recently, I needed to create a Vanshawali (family tree) for documentation purposes. At first, I thought it would be a simple task. I opened Microsoft Word and started building the family structure manually.

A few minutes later, I realized I had underestimated the problem.

Adding names, drawing connections, maintaining alignment, and updating relationships quickly became frustrating. What seemed like a small task turned into a time-consuming process. Every change required rearranging boxes and lines. The larger the family tree became, the more difficult it was to manage.

## Looking for a Better Solution

As a developer, my next instinct was to search for an existing tool.

I found a few genealogy and family tree websites, but most of them had one or more of these problems:

Required account creation
Complex user interfaces
Too many unnecessary features
Focused on long-term genealogy management rather than quick family tree generation

For my use case, I just wanted a simple way to enter family member names and generate a clean Vanshavali.

That's when another thought occurred to me.

If I, someone from a technical background, was struggling to complete this task, what would a non-technical person do?

## Identifying the Real Problem

Many people only need a family tree once or twice in their lifetime.

Common scenarios include:

Government documentation
Property-related paperwork
Family records
Community and cultural documentation
Personal family history preservation

Most existing solutions are designed for genealogy enthusiasts who actively maintain large family databases.

But there was a gap for people who simply needed to create a family tree quickly and move on.

## Building the Solution

I decided to build a lightweight Vanshawali Builder focused on simplicity.

My goals were straightforward:

No login required
Minimal learning curve
Quick family tree creation
Support for multiple languages
Clean and printable output

Instead of overwhelming users with dozens of options, I focused on reducing friction.

The idea was simple:

Open the website.
Enter names.
Generate the family tree.

That's it.

## Technical Implementation

The application was built using Next.js, which provided a fast development experience along with server-side rendering and optimized performance.

For deployment, I used Vercel, allowing the application to be hosted with minimal infrastructure management and automatic deployments.

### Tech Stack

Next.js
React
JavaScript
Vercel

The main challenge wasn't the deployment or framework selection—it was designing a user experience that remained simple while still handling hierarchical family relationships.

## What I Learned

This project reinforced an important lesson:

Many valuable software products don't solve billion-dollar problems.

Sometimes they solve small frustrations that thousands of people experience but nobody talks about.

As developers, we often focus on trends, AI, SaaS ideas, and large-scale products. But useful tools can emerge from everyday inconveniences.

The best opportunities often appear when you encounter a problem yourself and realize others probably face the same issue.

## Try It

I built a live demo that anyone can use:

LIVE LINK--https://vanshavali-builder.vercel.app

It's a niche tool, and most people may only need it once in their lives.

But when they do need it, I hope it saves them the same frustration that inspired me to build it.

HTML Latest Updates in 2026: New Features Every Web Developer Should Know

sumit sharma — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 10:00:07 +0000

The web platform continues to evolve rapidly, and HTML remains at the center of modern web development. While many developers still refer to "HTML5," the reality is that HTML is now maintained as a Living Standard, meaning new features are continuously added without waiting for major version releases.

In this article, we'll explore the latest HTML updates, browser-supported features, and improvements that are making websites more interactive, accessible, and easier to build.

What Changed in Modern HTML?

Unlike the past, where HTML versions were released periodically, today's HTML evolves continuously through the WHATWG HTML Living Standard. New elements, attributes, and APIs are introduced as browsers adopt them.

Some of the most important recent additions focus on:

Native UI components
Better accessibility
Reduced JavaScript dependency
Improved form controls
Enhanced multimedia support
Modern browser APIs **

1. HTML Popover API

One of the biggest recent additions is the Popover API.

Previously, creating tooltips, dropdowns, menus, and overlays required significant JavaScript. Now developers can create these components using simple HTML attributes. The Popover API has reached broad browser support, making it a practical solution for production websites.

Example
`
Open Menu

Navigation Content
`
Benefits

Less JavaScript
Better accessibility
Cleaner code
Improved performance **

2. Enhanced Select Elements

Traditional dropdowns have always been difficult to customize.

Modern browser implementations are introducing styleable select controls, allowing developers to customize dropdown appearance while maintaining accessibility and native behavior.

Benefits

Better user experience
Consistent design systems
Native accessibility support
Reduced need for custom dropdown libraries

3. Better Dialog and Modal Support

The element continues to improve with additional browser support and new control options.

Developers can now create accessible modal windows without relying heavily on external libraries. Recent browser updates have expanded dialog capabilities and closing behaviors.

Example
<dialog id="modal"> <p>Hello World!</p> </dialog>
**

4. Improved Accessibility Features

Accessibility remains a major focus of HTML development.

Recent browser improvements provide better support for:

Keyboard navigation
Screen readers
Semantic HTML elements
ARIA attributes
Interactive controls

Using semantic tags such as:

<header> <nav> <main> <section> <article> <footer>
helps search engines and assistive technologies better understand page structure.

5. Responsive Media Improvements

Modern HTML provides improved support for responsive multimedia content.

Features involving , , and responsive video handling help developers deliver optimized media based on device capabilities and screen sizes.
**
Example**
<picture> <source media="(max-width:600px)" srcset="mobile.jpg"> <img src="desktop.jpg" alt="Example"> </picture>

Benefits

Faster page loading
Better mobile experience
Improved SEO performance **

6. Native Toggle Switches

Browsers are experimenting with native switch-style controls that can replace custom JavaScript implementations.

Example:

<input type="checkbox" switch>

Although support is still evolving, it signals a move toward richer built-in form controls.

7. Stronger Security Features

Modern HTML standards continue to improve web security.

Recent developments include:

Safer attribute handling
Better protection against injection attacks
Enhanced browser security mechanisms
Improved controls for embedded resources

These improvements help developers build safer applications without relying entirely on external security solutions.

Why These Updates Matter

The latest HTML improvements are reducing the need for heavy JavaScript frameworks and third-party libraries.

Developers can now build:

Dropdown menus
Popovers
Dialog boxes
Responsive media
Interactive forms

using native browser capabilities.

This results in:

Faster websites
Better accessibility
Smaller bundle sizes
Improved SEO
Easier maintenance ** Best Practices for Developers in 2026 **

To stay current with modern HTML:

Use semantic elements whenever possible.
Prefer native browser features over custom JavaScript solutions.
Test new HTML APIs across browsers.
Focus on accessibility from the beginning.
Optimize images and media using responsive HTML techniques.
Follow updates from the HTML Living Standard.

Conclusion

HTML is far from a static language. The latest updates focus on simplifying development, improving accessibility, enhancing security, and reducing dependency on JavaScript. Features such as the Popover API, enhanced form controls, responsive media improvements, and better dialog support are shaping the future of web development.

For modern developers, learning these new HTML capabilities can lead to faster, more accessible, and more maintainable websites. As browsers continue implementing new standards, HTML remains one of the most powerful and essential technologies on the web.

ZingQR: A Minimalist QR Code Generator Built with React

sumit sharma — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 17:48:23 +0000

Introduction

**
In today’s fast-moving digital world, QR codes have become an essential tool for sharing information quickly and efficiently. Whether it’s for websites, payment links, contact details, Wi-Fi access, or business promotions, QR codes make communication simple and instant.
To solve this need in a clean and user-friendly way, I built ZingQR, a minimalist QR Code Generator designed with simplicity, speed, and modern UI in mind.
ZingQR allows users to generate QR codes instantly without unnecessary complexity. The goal was to create a lightweight and professional web application that focuses on usability while maintaining an attractive visual experience.
👉 Live App: https://zingqr.vercel.app
**

Why I Built ZingQR

**
Many QR code generators available online are overloaded with ads, confusing layouts, or paid restrictions. I wanted to build something different:

Fast and lightweight
Clean and modern design
No signup required
Easy QR code generation
Smooth user experience
Mobile-friendly responsive layout

The idea was simple: users should be able to visit the site, enter their content, generate a QR code, and download it within seconds.
**

Technologies Used

**
I used modern frontend technologies to ensure performance and scalability:

React.js for building the user interface
Vite for fast development and optimized performance
Tailwind CSS for clean and responsive styling
QR Code Generation Library for dynamic QR code creation
Framer Motion / Animations for smooth UI interactions

These tools helped create a professional and scalable product with excellent performance.
**

Key Features

Instant QR Code Generation Users can enter text, URLs, contact info, or other content and instantly generate a QR code in real time.
Customization Options Users can personalize their QR codes with options like:

Color customization
Size adjustment
Simple styling controls

This improves flexibility for both personal and business use.

Download Support Generated QR codes can be downloaded easily for future use in marketing materials, presentations, or sharing.
Responsive UI The application works smoothly across desktop, tablet, and mobile devices.
Clean Landing Page The homepage is designed to look modern, premium, and trustworthy while clearly explaining the product. **

Challenges Faced

One of the major challenges was creating a visually appealing UI without making the application feel heavy or slow.
Another challenge was handling real-time QR generation while keeping performance smooth across devices.
I also focused on balancing minimal design with enough features so the application feels useful without becoming complicated. **

What I Learned

This project helped me improve my skills in:
React component structure
State management
Responsive design principles
UI/UX thinking
Deployment and production optimization
Building real-world user-focused applications

More importantly, I learned how simplicity often creates the best user experience.
**

Future Improvements

**
I plan to add more advanced features such as:

Dynamic QR codes
Analytics tracking
User history
Logo embedding inside QR codes
Social media QR templates
Business card QR generation

These improvements can make ZingQR even more powerful for professional users.
**

Final Thoughts

**
ZingQR is more than just a QR generator—it represents my approach to building practical, clean, and useful products.
As a developer, I believe projects should solve real problems while delivering a smooth experience. This project reflects that mindset.
Building ZingQR taught me that great products are not always the most complex ones—they are often the simplest, fastest, and most user-friendly.
If you're interested in frontend development, product design, or building useful web applications, projects like this are a great way to grow.
Sometimes, small ideas create the biggest impact.
ZingQR is one of those ideas.

Try It Yourself

**
👉 Live App: https://zingqr.vercel.app 👉 GitHub: https://github.com/Sumitsharma31/ZingQR

If you find it helpful, a ⭐ on GitHub means the world to me. Contributions, feedback, and ideas are always welcome!

I built a full-stack AI blogging platform "gen-Blog" that writes, images, and publishes its own posts

sumit sharma — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 20:27:04 +0000

What if a blog could write itself?

That was the question I started with. Six weeks later, I shipped GenBlog — a full-stack AI-assisted content platform that generates complete, SEO-optimized articles (with a relevant featured image, tags, and meta description) from a single topic prompt. Or on a schedule, with zero human input.

Live demo: gen-blog.vercel.app

The problem I wanted to solve

**
Content-driven websites have a brutal cold-start problem. You need posts to get traffic, but writing quality posts takes hours. Tools like ChatGPT help, but you're still copy-pasting into a CMS, sourcing images manually, writing your own meta descriptions, and publishing by hand.

I wanted a system that handles all of that automatically — and still produces content that actually looks good and reads well.

What GenBlog does

Give it a topic. It returns a full article — structured markdown, a title, a slug, tags, a meta description, and a contextually relevant high-resolution featured image. You can trigger this manually from the admin dashboard, or let a cron job fire it automatically on a schedule.

Generated drafts land in the admin portal where you can review, edit, publish, or delete. Published posts are immediately live on the reader-facing frontend with full SEO metadata and beautiful markdown rendering.

The stack
Frontend — Next.js 16 (App Router) with React 19, Tailwind CSS 4, React Markdown with GFM support, and Next Themes for dark/light mode. State is handled purely with React hooks and context — no Redux, no Zustand. Icons are Lucide React for consistency. API calls go through Axios with custom interceptors.

Backend — Express.js running on Node.js v22+. MongoDB + Mongoose for data persistence. JWT for secure admin authentication. Node-Cron for scheduled generation. The two external APIs doing the heavy lifting are Google Gemini Pro for content generation and Unsplash for images.

Deployment — Frontend lives on Vercel (edge network, seamless Next.js integration). Backend is a Web Service on Render so the cron jobs keep running persistently and don't get killed by serverless cold starts.

How the AI pipeline works

**
When a generation is triggered (manually or by cron), the backend service builds a detailed prompt and sends it to the Gemini Pro API. The prompt asks for structured output — a title, meta description, comma-separated tags, and a long-form markdown body. Once the content comes back, a second call goes to the Unsplash API using the generated title as the search query to find the best-matching featured image. Both pieces get assembled into a Mongoose document and saved as a draft.

The whole thing takes about 8–12 seconds end-to-end. Not instant, but fast enough that the admin UX doesn't feel painful.

Things I learned the hard way

**
Prompt engineering matters a lot. Early versions returned inconsistently formatted markdown — sometimes with extra preamble, sometimes with missing sections. I eventually added strict output formatting instructions and a few few-shot examples directly in the system prompt. Quality improved dramatically.

Cron jobs and serverless don't mix. I started with a serverless function on Vercel for the backend. The cron would schedule fine but the function would time out or get killed mid-generation. Moving to a persistent Render Web Service fixed this entirely.

Unsplash rate limits are real. The free tier is 50 requests/hour. For a blog that auto-generates posts, that ceiling can come up fast. I added basic caching on the image lookup so repeated topics don't burn unnecessary requests.

SEO from day one. Next.js App Router makes dynamic metadata generation clean, but you have to plan your data model around it. I made sure every post has a slug, meta description, and OG image field from the very first schema design — retrofitting it later would have been messy.
**

Project structure

**
GenBlogs/ ├── frontend/ │ ├── src/app/ # App Router pages & layouts │ ├── src/components/ # UI components │ └── src/lib/ # Axios client & utilities └── backend/ ├── src/models/ # Mongoose schemas ├── src/routes/ # API endpoints ├── src/services/ # Gemini & Unsplash logic └── src/index.js # Entry point

What's next

**A few things I'm planning to add:

Multi-model support — let users choose between Gemini, Claude, and GPT for generation
Content quality scoring before auto-publish (checking readability, length, keyword density)
Newsletter integration — auto-send a digest when new posts go live
Analytics dashboard to track which AI-generated topics actually get traffic.

If you've built something similar or have opinions on the Gemini vs GPT-4 quality tradeoffs for long-form content, I'd love to hear them in the comments. And if you check out the live site, let me know what you think!

gen-blog.vercel.app