netlify-identity-widget VS Gatsby

Leveraging the open-source GoTrue API, Netlify Identity can be added to your site with the Netlify Identity widget by adding this

In the first version of the website, I used Netlify Identity, which is Netlify's own authentication solution. With Netlify Identity Widget it is easy to add authentication, but I quickly discovered that I missed some more advanced functionality. I therefore switched to Auth0, which to a greater extent allowed me to tailor the login solution. Auth0 also had some functionality I needed to create a user admin dashboard, like role-based authentication.

However, it soon became apparent that Netlify Identity had some limitations. One was that the login alert was not in Norwegian (I translated it and opened a pull request, but could not wait for it to go through. It's been 7 months now...). The other reason for not sticking with Netlify Identify was that I started working on a dashboard for user account management where I would need some more advanced functionality than Netlify Identity Widget could provide. After some research, I ended up choosing Auth0.

How do you know that Netlify is production ready? I found Netlify Identity to not be production ready* and now I'm not so sure about the rest of the platform.

* Three reasons. 1) The identity widget has people setting it up in such a way that tokens aren't refreshed and logins last only an hour. https://github.com/netlify/netlify-identity-widget/issues/11... 2) Netlify Identity keeps bumping me out despite having gone out of my way to get it configured properly. I don't know why but the issue has lasted for weeks. 3) In development mode, the token can't be verified without making a request to Netlify Functions, and the suggested path (in Redwood.js at least) is to just parse the JWT without verifying it.

The first time I started building static websites is when I discovered Gatsby. I built several projects using Gatsby and hosted it on Netlify free tier. It felt like a really robust architecture and I loved that it was free.

A Gatsby site uses Gatsby, which leverages React and GraphQL to create fast and optimized web experiences. Gatsby is often used for building static websites, progressive web apps (PWAs), and even full-blown dynamic web applications.

While Next.js is a powerful framework for building server-rendered React applications, it's not the only option for developers looking to create high-performance websites. One notable alternative is Gatsby, a static site generator that leverages React and GraphQL.

The other piece of important information to acknowledge here is that when we say RSCs need a framework, “framework” effectively just means “Next.js.” There are some smaller frameworks (like Waku) that support RSCs. There are also some larger and more established frameworks (like Redwood) that have plans to support RSCs or (like Gatsby) only support RSCs in beta. We will likely see this change once we get React 19 and RSCs are part of the Stable version. However, for now, Next.js is currently the only framework recommended in the official React docs that supports server components.

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GatsbyJS

Babel plugins are everywhere. From being used to remove unwanted exports from files in Gatsby to being used to disallow users from doing re-exports in Nextjs.

In terms of GitHub stars, SSGs like Next.js, Hugo, Gatsby, Docusaurus, Nuxt.js, and Jekyll top the list. Some popular SSGs even host conferences and workshops, providing resources and networking opportunities for those looking to explore more advanced topics in depth.

Flexibility : Developers have complete control over the frontend so they can use their preferred tools and frameworks like React, Next.js, Gatsby, or Remix.