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Indie Tip #5: Think Small (But Act Big). One of the trickiest things for me as an independent developer has been choosing the right size of applications to build. I didn't want to make software that only a few people would use, but at the same time, it was out of the question for me… Continue reading Indie Tip #5: Think Small (But Act Big)

Indie Tip #4: Get a Life. Being an independent developer is great, but it can lead you to feel isolated if you don't force yourself to get away from your computer. You're not mingling with co-workers every day, so you've got to find other ways to socialize. Otherwise you'll end up being just another blob… Continue reading Indie Tip #4: Get a Life

Indie Tip #3: Don't try to be cool. Call it a pet peeve, but it annoys me when I see “cool” applications with “cool” features that provide little or no value to real customers. Honestly, there are waayyy too many useless “Web 2.0” applications that look like they were designed by developers who want A-list… Continue reading Indie Tip #3: Don't try to be cool

Semantic web as social enjoyment. The recent launch of Freebase.com, the first application of the semantic web engine being developed by Danny Hillis’ new company, Metaweb, was written up by, among others, Esther Dyson, Tim O’Reilly, and Martin Heller, from whom I received an invitation to try Freebase. (Note: I don’t yet seem to have… Continue reading Semantic web as social enjoyment

Joyent Slingshot. Introducing Joyent Slingshot Joyent Slingshot allows developers to deploy Rails applications that work the same online and offline (with synchronization) and with drag into and out of the application just like a standard desktop application. We have Joyent Connector and a select group of third party applications working under Joyent Slingshot. Joyent plans… Continue reading Joyent Slingshot

Linux and Solaris – common ground ahead?. SUN’s free software credentials took a big step forward today with Ian Murdock’s decision to join the company. Congratulations all round. Now we have to find a new CTO at the Linux Foundation, and one with big shoes to fill. Hopefully, Ian’s experience will lead to something ISV’s… Continue reading Linux and Solaris – common ground ahead?

Indie Tip #2: Build something you can support.  The hardest, most time-consuming part of being an independent developer isn't coding: it's tech support. So as you're building your application, always think about how you can make it easier to support. This isn't entirely self-serving – in fact, it's one of the best things you can… Continue reading Indie Tip #2: Build something you can support

Tips for Independent Developers. Shortly after the Design Aesthetic of the Indie Developer panel at SXSW, I was asked for a list of tips for aspiring independent developers. I struggled to come up with a list at the time, so I'm going to try to redeem myself by making this a topic for a series… Continue reading Tips for Independent Developers

Updates on Working Virtually (March 2007). I regularly write about the advantages – and challenges – of working virtually. Several recent items are good reading for anyone interested in this concept. 1. Reasons to Hold Out Hope For Balancing Work and Home in the Wall Street Journal (1/11/07) reports that “What’s hot is informal flexibility… Continue reading Updates on Working Virtually (March 2007)

Security Theatre   Almost everything that happens before you fly on a plane is not as it seems. In order to deal with anxiety, the airlines put on a show. They've been doing it for a long, long time, and it's starting to show signs of wear and tear. The show is getting old and… Continue reading Security Theatre