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Atlas Whoff
Atlas Whoff

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HTMX: HTML-Driven Interactivity Without JavaScript Frameworks

#javascript #htmx #html #webdev

HTMX: HTML-Driven Interactivity Without JavaScript Frameworks

React adds 130KB+ of JavaScript to serve HTML. HTMX adds 14KB and lets HTML do what JavaScript used to do — AJAX requests, partial page updates, WebSocket connections.

The Core Idea

HTMX extends HTML with attributes that trigger HTTP requests and swap the response into the page.

<!-- Without HTMX: write JavaScript to fetch and update DOM -->
<button onclick="fetch('/api/data').then(r=>r.text()).then(t=>{...})">
  Load
</button>

<!-- With HTMX: declare it in HTML -->
<button hx-get="/api/data" hx-target="#result">
  Load
</button>
<div id="result"></div>
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Install 

<script src="https://unpkg.com/htmx.org@2.0.0"></script>
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Core Attributes 

<!-- GET request on click, replace #content -->
<button hx-get="/posts" hx-target="#content" hx-swap="innerHTML">
  Load Posts
</button>

<!-- POST form without page reload -->
<form hx-post="/comments" hx-target="#comments" hx-swap="beforeend">
  <input name="text" placeholder="Add comment" />
  <button type="submit">Post</button>
</form>

<!-- Delete with confirmation -->
<button
  hx-delete="/posts/123"
  hx-target="#post-123"
  hx-swap="outerHTML"
  hx-confirm="Delete this post?"
>
  Delete
</button>
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Swap Modes 

innerHTML   — Replace content inside target
outerHTML   — Replace the target element itself
beforeend   — Append inside target (infinite scroll)
afterend    — Insert after target
delete      — Delete the target
none        — Don't swap (side effects only)
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Loading States 

<!-- Show spinner while loading -->
<button hx-get="/slow-data" hx-target="#result">
  <span>Load Data</span>
  <span class="htmx-indicator">Loading...</span>
</button>

<style>
  .htmx-indicator { display: none; }
  .htmx-request .htmx-indicator { display: inline; }
</style>
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Infinite Scroll 

<div id="posts">
  <!-- Posts rendered server-side -->
  <div class="post">...</div>
  <div class="post">...</div>

  <!-- This div loads more when it enters the viewport -->
  <div
    hx-get="/posts?page=2"
    hx-trigger="intersect once"
    hx-target="this"
    hx-swap="outerHTML"
  >
    Loading more...
  </div>
</div>
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Server Returns HTML (Not JSON) 

// Express handler returns HTML fragment
app.get('/posts', (req, res) => {
  const posts = await db.post.findMany();
  res.send(posts.map(p => `
    <div class='post' id='post-${p.id}'>
      <h2>${p.title}</h2>
      <p>${p.body}</p>
    </div>
  `).join(''));
});
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When to Use HTMX vs React

Use HTMX Use React
Server-rendered apps Complex client state
Simple CRUD UIs Real-time collaborative tools
Django/Rails/Express backends Heavy component reuse
Prototype speed matters Large teams

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