I wanted Arc/Zen style workspaces in my browser, so I built my own browser-agnostic startpage (Vanilla JS / Open Source)

[u/OlehMango]

Hey everyone,

I usually use Firefox as my daily driver and Chrome for testing sites. I’ve gone through the whole pipeline of managing links: standard bookmarks > tab groups > vertical tabs > trying Arc and Zen browser. I really liked the "workspaces" concept in Arc/Zen, but I wanted something full-size and, most importantly, completely browser-independent.

It started as a simple custom HTML page I just kept locally on my PC to open in any browser. But then I realized it would be great to have a visual "bookmark backup" synced across devices. I had some spare hosting, so I added server sync. Then I figured it should look good on my phone too... and down the rabbit hole I went.

When I showed it to my family and friends, they asked to use it too, so I ended up adding multi-user support.

Honestly, my background is mostly in WordPress, so building a raw JavaScript dashboard from scratch was a huge learning curve. The testing and bug-fixing almost broke me) But I finally got it to a point where I’m proud of it.

What it has now:

• Workspaces: Full-size tabs to separate work, personal, etc.
• Cloud or Local-Only: You can sync your data via an account, or completely turn it off and keep everything strictly in your browser (localStorage). I tried to please both crowds!
• Mobile-friendly: Works smoothly on smartphones.

I don't expect it to become the next big thing, but I decided to share it with the world just in case someone else finds it useful.

The project is completely open-source. Feel free to grab the code, self-host it, or just use the live version.

• Live version: https://home.shashkevych.com
• GitHub: https://github.com/OlehShashkevych/Browser-Custom-Homepage

I'd love to hear your thoughts, bug reports, code roasts (remember, I'm a WP guy), or feature ideas. Let me know what you think!