/writing-web

description: Simple web development with HTML, CSS, JS, and HTMX. Use when working
  with .html, .css, or .htmx files, web templates, stylesheets, or vanilla JS scripts.
  NOT for React/Vue/Angular (use writing-typescript) or Node.js backends.
name: writing-web

Web Development

Scope

• Use for HTML, CSS, HTMX, vanilla JS, and server-rendered templates.
• Do not use for React, Vue, Angular, TypeScript, Node.js backends, or app architecture.
• Follow existing template language, asset pipeline, framework, accessibility, and security conventions.
• Do not add a dependency, build step, or framework unless the project already uses it or the user approves.

Reference Reads

• Read `references/patterns.md` before layout, behavior, accessibility, or security changes; skip for copy-only edits.

Defaults

• Prefer semantic HTML and CSS; add HTMX or JS only when native browser behavior is insufficient.
• Use mobile-first, fluid CSS. Put repeated design tokens in custom properties; keep one-off values local.
• Preserve usable links and forms when practical.
• Treat accessibility, responsive behavior, and safe rendering as required behavior.
• Escape untrusted output; avoid `innerHTML` unless project sanitizer marks content trusted.

Comments

• Use HTML comments only for template boundaries, generated blocks, or security assumptions that are not obvious from markup.
• Use CSS comments for non-obvious hacks, browser constraints, or integration boundaries.
• Use JS comments only for non-obvious constraints, invariants, side effects, tradeoffs, or browser quirks.
• Keep comments short. Move longer rationale to docs, issue links, or design notes.
• Do not comment obvious markup, selectors, declarations, or event handlers.
• Keep UI tests readable without comments; add one only for unobvious fixtures, browser setup, timing, or regression context.

Verification

• Run project-configured format, lint, validation, tests, and browser checks for the changed files.
• For UI changes, check mobile and desktop widths plus keyboard navigation.
• For changed interactive behavior, run a browser test or state why it was skipped.
• If a check is unavailable, state the gap and run the closest configured gate.
• For rendered-browser verification (screenshots, live interaction, cross-viewport checks), use `browser-automation`.

Failure Handling

• HTML or accessibility validation fails: fix the markup; do not suppress configured checks.
• HTMX request does not fire: check trigger, target, swap, response status, and CSRF/auth headers before adding JS fallback.
• Project conventions or checks are unclear: inspect config first; if still unclear, state the assumption and smallest safe gate.
• Broad, risky, or destructive change: state the risk and ask before acting. Do not run destructive commands.

Final Response

• Files changed:
• Checks:
• Skipped checks:
• Risks/follow-ups: