Write. Preview. Publish.
Simple Markdown, a toolbar and a preview. Keep a draft until it is ready, then publish from your browser.
A smaller way to publish
For those who have
something to say.
A place for your words. A home for your photographs. A small, self-contained alternative to WordPress, with just what you need to publish.
Words first. Everything else follows.
article.mdIT / EN
The first word
Every good story starts with a little room to think.
Write something worth keeping. Give it a title, add a photograph, and make it yours.
Markdown
- No database
- No external libraries
- No tracking
- Your own server
01 / The idea
Your voice.
Your files.
Your corner of the web.
Publishing a thought shouldn’t mean maintaining an ecosystem.
AlternPress keeps the essentials close: a Markdown editor, your photographs and a simple bilingual blog. There is one admin/editor and one place to write. Your articles are ordinary files, ready to keep, back up or move.
Small by choice. Yours by design.
02 / Made for writing
Enough to get your words out.
Two languages. One home.
Write in Italian, English or both. Each translation has its own text and publication state. You choose the words.
Bring your photographs.
Upload JPEG, PNG and WebP images. Add a cover and alternative text. Photos are resized and their metadata is removed.
Make it feel like you.
Change the site name, public URL, footer and custom CSS from the settings. Keep the look as simple as your writing.
Keep a way back.
Create a data backup from the dashboard. Review an archive before restoring it; the current data is backed up first.
Look after the details.
The Check button examines folder permissions, missing local references and potentially unused photographs. It reports; you decide what to change.
03 / New in 0.5
Your words.
More ways to read them.
Publish once. Give search engines and AI tools a clearer view of your articles.
JSON-LD and a knowledge graph describe published articles and connect them with your site and their topics.
Multilingual sitemaps and llms.txt list public content and link the available Italian and English versions.
The data follows your writing: publish, edit or withdraw an article and the indexes reflect the change. Drafts stay out. No extra service or manual regeneration.
Read the discovery guide04 / A little control, when you need it
Small site.
Useful tools.
Prefer the terminal? alt-cli helps you clear the cache, recover the admin password, make backups and check links. Included with the project.
Read the command guidealt-cli
# Check the installation
$ ./alt-cli doctor
# Clear the cache
$ ./alt-cli cache:clear
# Create a data backup
$ ./alt-cli backup:data
# Check external links
$ ./alt-cli links:check --external
05 / Make a little space
From files to your first post.
- 01
Download & copy
Get the release and copy all its files, including hidden files, to your web directory.
- 02
Set up your site
Follow the guide to set permissions, configure the site and set your admin password over SSH. There is no default password.
- 03
Write your first post
Open /admin/, add your words and photographs, and publish. Your blog can live at a domain or in a subfolder.
Bring your own hosting
PHP 8.2+ with the extensions listed in the guide, Apache 2.4 with rewrite rules, HTTPS and SSH access for setup. No database, Composer or npm needed.
A few things to know
Is it ready for everyone?
This is version 0.5.0-alpha: an early release for trying the project and helping improve it. Test it on your hosting and keep backups before trusting it with important work.
Is it really free?
Yes. AlternPress is released under the MIT license. You can use it, study it and modify it. The code and release archives are available on GitHub.
Can I change the theme and favicon?
The latest source includes optional local theme and favicon files. Your existing look stays unchanged until you add them. See the short customization guide; these additions are not in the 0.5.0-alpha download above.
Does it need outside services?
The blog runs on your own PHP hosting. Its CSS, JavaScript and Markdown renderer are included. It does not load CDNs, remote fonts or analytics. Checking external links only contacts those links when you ask it to.
How does HTML page caching work?
AlternPress caches public HTML and prepares Brotli quality 11 versions when a local encoder is available on your server. The cache refreshes when published content changes. Gzip or ordinary HTML provides a compatible fallback; Brotli is optional.
Does it translate my posts?
No. You write the Italian and English versions yourself. You can publish one language first and add the other later.
Will AI tools cite my articles?
Structured data and discovery indexes help tools find and interpret your public content. Each service decides what to read and cite; AlternPress does not promise rankings or AI citations. llms.txt is an optional convention.
Who is it for?
People who want a personal place to publish, with one admin/editor. There are no teams, user roles, comments or plugin marketplace. The aim is a small, understandable blog.
Less to maintain. More room to write.
Something to say?
Start here.
Download AlternPress
Early release. Read the guide and keep a backup.