Viewing profile — andy_adams

I do freelance/custom dev work. I continue to bid projects as if AI didn't exist. Recently (particularly since Cursor came onto the scene) I'm finding I finish projects 50-60% fast…

This does not match my experience. I live in an average cost-of-living area and know lots of large families (3+ kids) living off a single income, sometimes in the $12-15/hour range…

But the granularity isn't arbitrary! If you're billing hourly, and the client chooses not to use your time, you don't work any hours and you don't get paid. If you then billed them…

Sure, it's possible to focus on a tech-specific niche (security consultants come to mind) - but if you do so, you should be sure you know _exactly_ who your potential clients are. …

Oh, and I'd shy away from marketing yourself as a generic "problem solver". Try to find a more specific problem to solve (i.e. "I boost sales for eLearning websites by improving we…

I see mostly WordPress, Shopify, and a smattering of Rails (but Rails may be because that's one of my favorite tools). I've never seen ASP or Java out in the wild, but I'm 1 man wh…

Most freelance developers would do well to simply rethink how they describe themselves, focusing on specific business needs. A couple of lame examples: Instead of "I'm a React Deve…

I've been freelancing for 7 years, and the market has never been better for reliable web developers. A knowledgeable full-stack dev can earn above SV-level salary as a remote freel…

Thank you for your answers! Do you pre-filter clients at all to ensure they have the budget? I've done scoping work for free, only to learn afterwards that the clients budget was 1…

> Don't charge money to scope projects Would you recommend this even to a solo consultant, where scoping can take multiple days with the prospect of that time being lost? I'm in a …

According to the developer survey, I'm in the upper 50% in years of experience. I know I'm not old by any reasonable metric (it was mildly a joke), but relative to the industry I'm…

Having built lots of WordPress sites over the years, I can give you 2 strong reasons why it continues to grow, despite being disliked by software engineers: 1. There is no easier w…

Heck, I'm looking at this survey and wondering if I should put Python on my learning queue. It does seem to be in use across a lot of disciplines, including some of the most popula…

Given that students are probably learning Python in university, I could see this being a strong reason for its growth. I hadn't thought of the "manager" angle - it makes sense that…

One of the main findings of the SO survey was that Python is indeed rising, overtaking other languages as one of the most popular and desired, so although it was popular in the pas…

I think the questions are formulated as such: "What web framework(s) do you use?", and respondents can pick as many as they want. That would explain the popularity: It's hard for m…

Respondents are allowed to choose multiple answers for each question, so the totals != 100%.

Can someone help this old (2^5 years) developer out? I've worked with a number of programming languages over the years, and have never found a combination that brings me such joy a…

Thank you!

Is it odd that I'm drawn to the architecture of the dilapidated wooden homes? I've never seen it before - particularly the ornate pieces above the windows. Is there a name to the s…

In the US, email agreements can be enforceable contracts, but I always take the step of getting an eSignature. My take on international contracts: Working internationally, it's pre…

I've only started going to tech meetups recently, as an attempt to socialize. It's definitely helped! I basically avoided it for the first 6 years, so I'd recommend it very much.

FWIW, I've been married the whole time I've been a freelancer, and the loneliness didn't settle in until year 5 or so. Your spouse will probably not want to talk shop all the time,…

You get my productive output for normal working hours, typically an 8-9 hour range, but I'm not tracking time spent on potty breaks, eating lunch, or taking a walk outside.