Show HN: GitClassic.com, GitHub circa 2015 without JS & AI

13•heythisischris•3h ago

Hey HN,

Got tired of how bloated GitHub became- copilot everywhere, janky JS, slow loads. So I built GitClassic, a read-only GitHub interface that's pure server-rendered HTML, kind of like old.reddit.com. No JavaScript.

Try it: https://gitclassic.com

Browse any public repo, files, READMEs. Loads instantly, works on any connection. No account needed for public repos.

Stack: Node on Lambda, server-side rendering, cached against GitHub's API. Pro adds private repo access via GitHub OAuth.

Built this in about 3 hours. Would love feedback on what's missing or broken. Issues are next.

Thanks, Chris

Comments

captn3m0•2h ago

I will actually pay for this if this includes the complete issue/PR data, as well as the ability to review/approve/merge PRs. The GitHub UI is so slow that loading each 5 line PR is just too slow and I have to open the diff in a new tab, because going back reloads the whole damn thing instead of the amazing jquery/pjax cached version from a decade ago that worked fast even on 3G networks.

Aside: you will need permission to use the Git trademark.

heythisischris•1h ago

Duly noted- my immediate next step is Issues/PRs! Would love to start seeing / using that too.

shukantpal•1h ago

It doesn't quite work: https://gitclassic.com/pixijs (repos.filter is not a function)

Also it seems to get rate limited, but good work.

heythisischris•1h ago

Responded to someone else below: if you sign in using GitHub, you can get your own allotment of 5,000/req/hour. The public API only allows 60 request per hour, but since we're using Lambda, it actually shifts to different IP addresses depending on the invocation.

embedding-shape•1h ago

Sounds like maybe you should add caching in there, so at least the /explore and facebook/react works. I ended up rate limited before I could see a single repository.

chandlerswift•1h ago

https://gitclassic.com/navidrome:

    Error: repos.filter is not a function

https://gitclassic.com/navidrome/navidrome:

    API rate limit exceeded for 18.222.58.123. (But here's the good news: Authenticated requests get a higher rate limit. Check out the documentation for more details.)

heythisischris•1h ago

Hah, should've anticipated hitting the public rate limits... if you sign in using GitHub, you can get your own allotment of 5,000/req/hour.

The public API only allows 60 request per hour, but since we're using Lambda, it actually shifts to different IP addresses depending on the invocation.

smarx007•1h ago

I would say the November 2015 look would be the one to go back to.* [1] This one seems to be from 2015 before the iconic redesign that makes it instantly recognizable as Github.

*with a dark theme.

[1]: https://github.blog/news-insights/a-new-look-for-repositorie...

heythisischris•26m ago

Oh yes, brings back memories from my agency days... SourceTree, JIRA, and the better Slack icon. I'll start targeting this layout.

heythisischris•1h ago

If anyone wants to try out GitClassic Pro, I added a promo code for 50% off, it's "HACKERNEWS"- comes out to $20/year. Gives you access to private repos. Going to dedicate as much time / attention as possible to building a better GitHub frontend! I think a lot of people want this (myself included).

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Show HN: GitClassic.com, GitHub circa 2015 without JS & AI

Comments

Level S4 solar radiation event

What came first: the CNAME or the A record?

Nanolang: A tiny experimental language designed to be targeted by coding LLMs

Nearly a third of social media research has undisclosed ties to industry

Targeted Bets: An alternative approach to the job hunt

How we made Python's packaging library 3x faster

The assistant axis: situating and stabilizing the character of LLMs

Notes on Apple's Nano Texture (2025)

From Nevada to Kansas by Glider

Graphics In Flatland – 2D ray tracing [video]

British redcoat's lost memoir reveals harsh realities of life as a disabled vet

The coming industrialisation of exploit generation with LLMs

Weight Transfer for RL Post-Training in under 2 seconds

Show HN: An interactive physics simulator with 1000's of balls, in your terminal

Show HN: Subth.ink – write something and see how many others wrote the same

Conditions in the Intel 8087 floating-point chip's microcode

Simple Sabotage Field Manual (1944) [pdf]

Sending Data over Offline Finding Networks

CSS Web Components for marketing sites (2024)

Use Social Media Mindfully

Show HN: Pipenet – A Modern Alternative to Localtunnel

Show HN: A creative coding library for making art with desktop windows

Bypassing Gemma and Qwen safety with raw strings

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Fix your robots.txt or your site disappears from Google

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