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Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

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Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#131

Post by privateSFacct »

cronix wrote: post #116
mduerksen wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/veggie-garden-planner/id132992... Suggestions are always welcome. My friend is also working on an Android version, though it doesn't have feature parity (yet).

That's pretty cool! Have you thought about making it into a PWA and ditch the proprietary ios/android ecosystems and just allow anyone with a browser to use it? It doesn't seem like there is much in this app that NEEDS to be a "mobile" specific app. It looks like you could do it all with html/js and some local storage. I'm a big believer in open crossplatform systems, when it's possible. Obviously if you need access…

Can you give some examples of simple open cross platform systems that make money?

I like my apps to be apps and a lot of the "Apps" that are HTML/js are janky cross platform and are tricky to pay for (vs one touch on ioS)

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#132

Post by cosmodisk »

imhoguy wrote: post #112
stagas wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Poland almost everything is 1/3 of the price compared to the rest of the EU for the same "stuff", arguably most have Polish branding but there are common products(Nestle, Coca Cola, etc) that are significantly cheaper.

What? Electronics, cars too?

Europe is truly unique in this regard. For instance, my father in law bought a Lithuanian made furnice from a retailer in Latvia because it was cheaper than if he would have bought in Lithuania. Car reimport exist as well,where a German would buy a car made in Germany from a Lithuanian dealer and transport it back to Germany,because it's cheaper. There are some companies that import medication, repackage and sell abroad in markets where the same medication costs more( this one is an old one,not sure if it's still the case)

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#133

Post by emesis31 »

herohamp wrote: post #103
JshWright wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, "amateur" has pretty positive connotations for me in this context (native English speaker from New York).

As a native english speaker from Maryland while it doesnt have any negative connotations, I do feel a word like hobbyist would be better

"Hobbyist" doesn't really make sense, as it's not my hobby to make MP3 playlists.

"Amateur" is good as an antonym to "Pro".

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#134

Post by keithnz »

mduerksen wrote: post #125
wink wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lucky you. I tried to make a game with my (then-girlfriend, now-) wife and it kinda fizzled out. Sure, took on too much, I'm not the best with bringing projects to launch, but whatever. I really can't say who spent more time (she did graphics, I wrote code) but to this day it's a bit of a sore point to talk about, just that we were both absolutely not happy with the outcome and see it as completely wasted time.

Thanks for the sobering counterpoint to my perfect formula for success :) A game is really a tough one though.

a game seems less about solving a problem though. Educational games can semi help with solving the problem of learning specific topics, but often hard to pull off well.

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#136

Post by atomize »

emesis31 wrote: post #133
herohamp wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a native english speaker from Maryland while it doesnt have any negative connotations, I do feel a word like hobbyist would be better

"Hobbyist" doesn't really make sense, as it's not my hobby to make MP3 playlists. "Amateur" is good as an antonym to "Pro".

I agree with Amateur as well. The Olympics (until the 90s [think USA Dream Team]) were only open to AMATEUR athletes. No one would argue that Olympians weren't skilled, and Olympians never felt slighted by this category. It simply implied that athletes trained and participated in a sport out of love for the game rather than for profit. Amateur literally describes: 'pursuing an activity independently of their source of income', that's all.

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#138

Post by merrvk »

mduerksen wrote: post #55
yroc92 wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any chance we could check it out?

Sure: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/veggie-garden-planner/id132992... Suggestions are always welcome. My friend is also working on an Android version, though it doesn't have feature parity (yet).

My mother will love this. I bet she had no idea she needed it as well!

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#139

Post by MisterBastahrd »

bflesch wrote: post #31

Congrats for getting from zero to one! It seems like you have some product market fit, that's really great. As others have pointed out, I'd recommend: - please rename "amateur" to something more positive. no customer wants to be called an amateur - Increase prices for the pro tier - Improve your "pricing plan" page, take a look at other (more successful) SaaS products and change button labels accordingly. Just take t…

Home, Plus, Pro.

Microsoft figured this out years ago.

Re: Thank HN: My SaaS paid my rent this month

#140

Post by amelius »

DBYCZ wrote: post #61

"build something that scratches your own itch." Awesome advice.

I'm not sure this is solid advice. As a programmer it would mean I'd have to build my own compiler and editor, but the low-hanging fruit has already been taken in this area, so perhaps it's better to scratch someone else's itch in some niche area that nobody has explored yet.
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