Tools
Tools that came out of making games
When the same chore keeps eating an afternoon, I write something to do it for me. Some of those turn out good enough for other people.
Almost everything I build starts on my own projects. A step in the pipeline takes too long, or a job I do by hand shows up for the third time that month. The first version fixes exactly that.
Tools that keep earning their place get tidied up and handed to other people. By then each one has its own name, its own site and its own users, so I keep them off this page and let each one stand on its own.
How a tool gets made
- 01
Notice the chore
It happens on a real project, more than twice, and it costs real time. Hypothetical problems do not count.
- 02
Fix only that
The first version solves the one problem. No settings screen, no plugin system, no roadmap.
- 03
Use it on the next job
If it gets in the way, it changes or it goes. Most ideas stop here, and that is fine.
- 04
Hand it over
The ones that survive get cleaned up, get a name of their own, and move to their own site.