I’ve been working on ZIN Engine — a lightweight server + templating engine that lets me write plain .html and still use things like loops, API data, forms, and dynamic content — without touching a framework or build step.
It started as a personal solution to build faster, cleaner websites using just HTML/CSS/JS — and now I’m sharing it with the community to explore where it can go next.
Core features
Serve any folder on port 9001 (or use behind NGINX)
Smart templates: Nested layouts using template.html
Clean URLs like /about → about.html
Variable rendering: {{ varName | "fallback" }}
URL rewriting via zin.config
Zin Tags
<zin-time /> → Date, time, math & timezone formatting
<zin-include /> → Include partials or even .md files
<zin-data /> → Load from MySQL, APIs, JSON, CSV, Google Sheets
<zin-repeat /> → Loop over dynamic data
<zin-form /> → Secure form + Google reCAPTCHA
Plus: <zin-set />, <zin-random />, <zin-crypto /> and more
Why I’m sharing?
It’s still under development, but It is usable and works great for me, but I want to improve its internals (especially optimization & parsing). I’d be grateful if you try it out, break it, suggest ideas, or help shape what it could become.
I see an emoji-filled README with no code. I think the real question people are going to have (assuming you actually get a repo up somewhere) is: why use this over htmx? Also the go reddit sub has been flooded with open source projects written by LLMs so one of the first things I’ve been checking lately is to make sure there’s some commit history. Where’s your code?
ZIN is a personal project I work on in my spare time, so things move gradually. The core repo is open here if you’re curious: https://github.com/zin-engine/core. I usually push updates as I iterate on features or internals.
HTMX - I really respect what it does. ZIN takes a different approach, focusing more on server-side simplicity using Go, without a build step or extra tooling. Not meant to replace anything, just exploring a different direction I’ve found useful.
Happy to hear thoughts or ideas if you have any. Always open to helpful input.
That link doesn’t work. I’m wondering if you have a repo that is accidentally private. Try viewing that link from a browser where you are not logged in to GitHub to see what we are seeing.
Core features
Zin Tags
Why I’m sharing?
