PocketBase Funding Falls Through, But UI Rewrite Moves Forward

The PocketBase project has hit an unexpected roadblock in its funding journey, with the developer announcing that a planned sponsorship from FLOSS/fund has fallen through due to regulatory complications.

Funding Partnership Collapses

In a candid update, PocketBase maintainer Gani Georgiev revealed that the partnership with FLOSS/fund and GitHub didn't materialize as expected. The funding organization wanted to issue a wire transfer from India, which would have required extensive cross-jurisdictional paperwork. Georgiev expressed discomfort with the arrangement, citing concerns about data privacy and security:

"I don't feel comfortable doing that because I don't trust them, nor the India government, with processing and storing personal sensitive data (especially over insecure shared mail inbox channel)."

This development forced Georgiev to withdraw his FLOSS/fund application and decline the funding. He acknowledged making a mistake by not researching the arrangement more carefully before making public announcements and decisions.

Despite this setback, the core goal remains unchanged: to publish a stable PocketBase version this year. However, Georgiev has tempered expectations, noting there are "no hard promises" and that he'll need to explore alternative funding options before making detailed plans for remaining tasks.

Ambitious UI Rewrite in Progress

While the funding news was disappointing, the announcement also revealed that Georgiev has been working on a significant UI rewrite for several weekends already. This rewrite addresses one of PocketBase's biggest current limitations: the lack of dashboard customization.

The Problem with Current UI

The existing dashboard architecture makes it difficult to extend functionality. While server-side plugins can be created using app event hooks, there's no mechanism to extend the UI for features like:

• Adding custom options to existing fields
• Registering new fields
• Customizing settings in "production" mode
• Registering new OAuth2 providers
• Adding new system sections

Why Not Use Existing Frameworks?

Georgiev explored several popular frontend frameworks including Vue, Preact, Lit, Solid, Alpine, and Mithril. While technically capable, he found issues with each:

1. Framework lock-in: Most have their own DSL that doesn't play nicely with other frameworks
2. Maintenance concerns: Fear of major refactoring, direction changes, or project abandonment
3. Dependency bloat: PocketBase's philosophy emphasizes minimal dependencies

Introducing Shablon

The solution? A custom frontend framework called Shablon (https://github.com/ganigeorgiev/shablon), written in plain JavaScript with zero dependencies. The framework is designed specifically for PocketBase's needs with minimal functionality:

• No component concept - everything is plain DOM elements
• Optional reactivity through store implementation
• Uses Proxy approach similar to modern "signals" patterns
• Global MutationObserver for lifecycle functions (onmount, onunmount)

Georgiev acknowledges it's "certainly not as ergonomic and pretty as something like Svelte" but believes it's better suited for PocketBase's purpose. If it proves too inefficient, he's prepared to fall back to Vue or Lit.

Community Reactions

The announcement sparked significant discussion in the GitHub thread, with community members expressing mixed reactions:

Support for the approach:

• Many users congratulated Georgiev on the funding attempt and supported his UI vision
• Some appreciated the commitment to minimal dependencies and maintainability
• The community recognized the complexity of creating a proper UI plugin system

Concerns raised:

• Some users advised against creating custom frontend frameworks, suggesting it could slow development
• Questions about timeline and mobile responsiveness
• Suggestions to leverage existing solutions like shadow DOM or web components

Technical discussions:

• Debate over the MutationObserver approach versus shadow DOM
• Questions about theming and component styling
• Interest in the new PocketBase UI kit for reusable elements

What's Next

Georgiev has indicated that the project will enter a temporary "feature freeze" while he focuses on the UI rewrite. He plans to:

1. Complete the Shablon framework integration
2. Develop a new PocketBase UI kit with reusable components
3. Implement proper UI plugin system support
4. Address remaining roadmap items

The discussion has been locked to prevent further spamming, with Georgiev promising a new announcement once he has more clarity and readiness to request community feedback.

Key Takeaways

• Funding setback: FLOSS/fund sponsorship fell through due to regulatory and data privacy concerns
• UI rewrite continues: Work on a custom frontend framework (Shablon) is already 90% complete
• Philosophy-driven: Decision prioritizes long-term maintainability over short-term convenience
• Community patience needed: No firm timelines, but significant progress being made
• Hobby project stance: Georgiev emphasizes PocketBase remains primarily a personal project despite its growing popularity

The situation highlights the challenges open-source maintainers face when balancing community expectations with personal project philosophy, especially when external funding opportunities arise but don't align with core values around data privacy and project independence.