This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Forrest
I just finished building Hive, a messaging platform where your membership level determines what you can see and do. Started it to get better at PostgreSQL and authentication, but ended up creating something I actually want to use.
How It Works
The concept is straightforward: three membership tiers with different privileges. Basic members can post messages but can’t see who wrote them. Premium members can see message authors. Admins can see everything and delete messages when needed.
It’s like having different clearance levels in the same space. You’re all participating in the same conversations, but your access to information depends on your membership status.
What I Learned Building It
The backend runs on Node.js and Express.js with PostgreSQL handling data storage. I used Passport.js for authentication and bcrypt for password security. The frontend uses EJS templating, which made it easier to show or hide content based on user permissions.
The trickiest part was implementing the access control without making the code messy. I learned that planning your frontend structure early saves you from major refactoring later. Also discovered that conditional rendering in templates is powerful but needs to be organized well or it becomes unreadable.
Why I’m Sharing This
Hive represents the kind of project that started as skill practice but became something worth using. The membership tiers create an interesting dynamic where the community feels more intentional than typical social platforms.
I built this to learn, but I think others might find the membership model interesting. You can try the live demo at https://hive-ohwf.onrender.com/ or explore the source code on GitHub at https://github.com/frrst-ian/hive.
The code is straightforward and the concept is simple, but the execution taught me a lot about authentication systems and user permissions. Sometimes the best learning projects are the ones that solve a problem you didn’t know you had.
Next Steps
Planning to add user profiles and message editing features. The foundation is solid enough to build on, and there are obvious ways to expand the functionality.
If you’re working on similar authentication challenges or just curious about membership-based platforms, feel free to take a look. Always interested in feedback from other developers working in this space.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Forrest