Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

281–290 of 671 posts

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#281

Post by lucgommans »

Most certainly, too many to count. A few are on github, e.g. https://github.com/lgommans/mountall.sh, various others are on https://lucgommans.nl/p/

If you're just having a look around, I might recommend to start with

- the hangman solver as a funny random example https://lucgommans.nl/p/hangman-solver/ (for a game to try it on: apt install bsdgames && hangman)

- https://dro.pm

I use 'cau' a lot myself for 'inline' footnotes in chats, e.g. https://lgms.nl/p/cau/?Look+at+how+much+data+I+can+fit+in+th.... but I could see how most people would not use my server for that. Feel free to steal the code! https://lgms.nl/p/cau/?source

I'd be curious to know how many people haven't made the equivalent of https://lgms.nl/p/ip/, at least if you're from before when icanhazip became popular

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#282

Post by ChuckMcM »

Like zillions.

I wired up all my house electrical circuits with a TED[1] unit and wrote code to track electrical usage by circuit.

I've written scripts the automate the creation of parts like screws that can be imported into 3D CAD tools.

I've written code that processes processor data sheets to generate include files for the register definitions.

I wrote a simple CMS to manage web pages.

I've got a bunch of programs that are part of some ML experiments for converting text books into knowledge graphs.

I wrote a simple database to manage all the DVD/Blurays I have so I can know quickly at a yard sale if the movie is one I don't have.

I wrote a 3D graphics package that would talk to the 3DFx libraries for their VooDoo graphics accelerators.

I wrote a filter designer that would optimize RF filters based on standard available parts and a minimum of winding my own coils.

Libraries for STM32 chips so that I could easily go from idea to something I could test.

The list does go on, but you have to understand that before I ever wrote code "for money" I wrote it for fun, learning, and exploration.

[1] https://www.theenergydetective.com/

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#284

Post by Karrot_Kream »

primitivesuave wrote: post #128

I created a program that prints QR codes onto sheets of peel-and-stick labels. When someone scans the code, they are directed to a simple web app that manages food sharing with my four roommates. We noticed that we buy a lot of the same things (bananas, avocados, eggs, etc), so we implemented a system where anyone can stick a QR code onto something they want to share, and anyone else can scan it to record what they t…

What label printer do you use and did you end up automating the printing process or just the QR code generation process?

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#285

Post by a_chris »

primitivesuave wrote: post #128

I created a program that prints QR codes onto sheets of peel-and-stick labels. When someone scans the code, they are directed to a simple web app that manages food sharing with my four roommates. We noticed that we buy a lot of the same things (bananas, avocados, eggs, etc), so we implemented a system where anyone can stick a QR code onto something they want to share, and anyone else can scan it to record what they t…

You are living the future my friend

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#286

Post by Karrot_Kream »

tdhz77 wrote: post #177
primitivesuave wrote: post #128

I created a program that prints QR codes onto sheets of peel-and-stick labels. When someone scans the code, they are directed to a simple web app that manages food sharing with my four roommates. We noticed that we buy a lot of the same things (bananas, avocados, eggs, etc), so we implemented a system where anyone can stick a QR code onto something they want to share, and anyone else can scan it to record what they t…

It’s like Web 3.0 for your fridge… make a market for anything. A roommate taking 3 eggs from me doesn’t bother me. Firing off a text, “Hey, I took 3 eggs” is all I need. We really just don’t like to share these days. That’s the problem we are now solving it appears.

Lol do you really need to criticize someone else's code written by that person to solve their own problem in their own sphere based on your personal (sharing-positive) ideology? This is peak Hackernews.

Live and let live is what I say. Writing code for yourself and your own problems is fun.

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#287

Post by daltont »

Right before seeing this, I was using a JavaFX application that I wrote to extract highlights from videos that I shot this past weekend for my daughter's volleyball team.

I wanted tool where I can zoom in using the mouse wheel and have the zoomed clip extracted. Needed the basic features of HUDL (https://www.hudl.com/), but the generated videos are local files and not controlled by HUDL.

Another UI tool I wrote and use is a tool that scans a directory for JPEG files and uses the EXIF data to create a hierarchy of directories in / format and moves the files to the directory corresponding to its creation date.

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#288

Post by earthboundkid »

rozab wrote: post #265
lobocinza wrote: post #253

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes I use passages from books. Easy to remember a >60 char password, can always check the book and it brings back to memory a book that I enjoyed each time I use it. For PINs I like to use a long sequence of digits of a physical/mathematical constant.

From books? Having anything that's natural language will kill your entropy, way way below correct horse battery staple. Moreso if it's indexed by Google Ngrams.

Yes. But it’s much more dramatic in the movie when the villain runs his finger along the spines of the books in your library idly but then his eyes narrow and he aggressively pulls a book off the shelf and flips it open to a well worn spot. Checkmate!

Re: Ask HN: Have you created programs for only your personal use?

#289

Post by difflens »

I have! I've always found GitHub's default diff to be annoying to track changes. I needed a way to align the left and right editors right next to each other so I could get context. So I wrote an app and published it on the GitHub marketplace: https://github.com/marketplace/difflens. I use it everyday and have other (regular) users too. It's free to try
Post reply on HN