Latest vs Legacy: A Dilemma

I recently overhauled my portfolio website, though it is still a work in progress. Choosing which projects to highlight is enough of a dilemma, as is choosing color scheme, layout, etc.

But the biggest dilemma I ran into was this: I designed the site using Bootstrap v4 framework. We’re halfway through v5 land now. The question is still: should I refactor and rework the whole site to use a newer version of the framework, or is it better to keep it on a stable, legacy version of it?

The Truth Is, I don’t know.

And you don’t know, either. When considering upgrading to a new framework, language version, library, etc. one needs to consider a lot of different factors. There are pros and cons, just like any major overhaul or refactor.

The Possibility of an Upgrade

Bootstrap 5 ditches JQuery, and overall has improved page performance. Is this an issue? Surely for many users, but is it for me? No, not really. My site is very simple, and performance is fine across a range of devices. This is always a major concern when changing libraries, implementations, or frameworks.

Will I be utilizing any of the new or overhauled features? Also no. My site is simple enough that anything Bootstrap 5 can do that 4 can’t simply isn’t going to be utilized. Bootstrap 4 has wider compatibility with older devices and browsers, so that’s a tip in the direction of maintaining on the old version.

The Upgrade Process

The other major consideration? The mythical man-hour, or how much time, effort, and refactoring it will take to upgrade to the newer framework. I have designed in Bootstrap 5, but not extensively and there are breaking changes to the code that will have to be addressed, simply to get the site looking the exact same as it already does: that seems wasteful.

Of course, on the other hand, Bootstrap 4 reached EOL over 18 months ago as of this writing, and having my portfolio utilize the newest version of the framework demonstrates skill in this new version, as well as the propensity to keep learning and working with the latest and greatest tools.

In the end…

…it probably doesn’t matter much. The site’s look, feel, and user experience is going to remain nearly identical regardless of how I serve it up. Anyway, check out my very simple portfolio website here and see if you like any of the projects I’ve cooked up or have any suggestions on how to make the portfolio a better product!