HBoost: My Hackathon Project Accelerator

I just released HBoost, a template I built to speed up development for hackathons and projects. You can find it on GitHub at https://github.com/ehewes/HBoost.

What I Created

I built HBoost to solve the problem of spending too much time setting up new projects. Whether you're in a hackathon or starting a new project, getting the basic structure right takes forever. I wanted something that gets you coding faster.

Why It's Useful

This template eliminates the repetitive setup work. Instead of configuring TypeScript, setting up routing, and organizing files from scratch, you start with a working full-stack setup.

Key Benefits

• Fast Setup: Install dependencies and start developing immediately
• No Conflicts: Scripts designed to avoid common development environment issues
• Hackathon Ready: Perfect for rapid prototyping and quick iterations
• Project Scalable: Structure that grows with your application
• Modern Stack: TypeScript, Next.js, Koa.js - production-ready technologies

How It Works

Quick Start

# Install all dependencies (root, backend, frontend)
npm run install:all

# Start both backend and frontend development servers
npm run dev

Backend Features

I created an interactive route generator that works like Next.js routing. Run npm run create in the backend directory to add API endpoints without writing boilerplate code.

cd backend
npm run create
# Enter the endpoint (e.g., /chat/work/test): /api/users/profile
# Enter method (GET/POST, default GET): GET

This automatically creates the route file and handler, preventing duplicates and saving time.

Frontend Features

I set up a component structure where everything can be modularized. Components export separately with their types, making it easy to reuse and maintain code.

Perfect For

• Hackathons where you need to build fast
• Personal projects that need quick setup
• Learning new technologies without configuration headaches
• Teams that want consistent project structure

Future Plans

I'm planning to add an npx command for even easier project creation and more integrations. The goal is to make turning hackathon projects into real applications as simple as possible.