Title: Developing a Custom Live Map Platform with PHP on Limited Resources: Seeking Feedback and Advice

Are you intrigued by the idea of creating your own live mapping platform similar to Liveuamap? Recently, I took on the challenge of building a simplified, “homemade” version using PHP, driven by a desire to learn and improve my development skills. I’d like to share my experience, get some feedback, and explore potential next steps.

Due to temporary limitations with Chromebooks, my options for development were somewhat restricted. While cloud-based IDEs and services like GitHub Codespaces are excellent tools, I found myself hesitant to rely on them extensively—mainly because I prefer to reserve these resources for more complex or future projects. Instead, I utilized a basic text editor combined with some AI-assisted coding tools to bring my concept to life.

The motivation behind this project was twofold: boredom and dissatisfaction with the current state of open-source Liveuamap sources, which are often poorly maintained and difficult to set up. I aimed to craft a lean, straightforward version that simplifies the process and makes it accessible.

Currently, I’m working within a free hosting environment, which naturally limits some of the modern development technologies I’d like to explore. My question is—should I consider upgrading my tech stack to include more contemporary tools like Node.js and other modern frameworks? Would this improve performance, maintainability, or scalability for such a project?

If you’re interested in seeing a live demo, you can find it here: https://aregan.byethost33.com/aregan/

I appreciate any feedback or advice you can share, especially regarding technology choices for small-scale projects on limited resources. Thanks in advance!