The Motivation
As developers, we use SVGs daily. But I realized that most "quick" online editors or optimizers follow a common pattern: they are either bloated SaaS platforms that require a login, or sketchy-looking sites that upload your assets to a remote server.
In a world where our browsers are powerful enough to run full IDEs, why are we still uploading private vector data to a third-party server just to tweak a path?
That’s why I started building Vector Gnome.
What is Vector Gnome?
It’s a local-first, minimalist SVG editor. The core philosophy is simple: Your data never leaves your machine.
Key Highlights:
- Local-First: All processing happens in the browser via the Canvas/SVG API.
- Privacy by Default: No tracking, no mandatory accounts, no "cloud" sync you didn't ask for.
- Zero-Burn: Built with a minimal footprint to be fast and solve one problem effectively.
The Technical Stack (The "Midas" Approach)
To keep this project sustainable as an indie developer, I used a stack that prioritizes performance and low overhead:
- Frontend: Next.js (Static Export) + Tailwind CSS.
- Deployment: Docker Native on a minimal Hetzner VPS (CX23).
- Proxy: Traefik with automated Let's Encrypt SSL.
- Telemetry: A custom-built, lightweight system to track basic usage without compromising user privacy (no cookies, no PII).
Why I’m Sharing This
I'm building a suite of "Hyper-Tools"—small, focused, and privacy-respecting utilities. Vector Gnome is the first experiment.
I’m currently in early beta and I’d love to get some feedback from this community:
- What is the biggest "pain point" in your current SVG workflow?
- Would you prefer a "code-first" editor (tweaking attributes) or a "visual-first" one (dragging paths)?
Check it out: vector.hyper-tools.online
Feel free to drop your questions about the stack or the architecture below. I'm here to chat!
Top comments (1)
Thanks for checking this out! I'm particularly curious to know if you guys think a 'Layers' panel is essential for a tool like this or if keeping it 'one-path-at-a-time' is better for speed. What do you think?