My product is my garden • Hacker News Board

Re: My product is my garden

#31

Post by nexthash » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 8:34 AM UTC

This post almost reads like a manifesto of the digital gardening movement that was showcased on HN a few months back [1], with some indiehackers sprinkled in. Just a small space of your own on the Internet to cultivate your thoughts/projects, outside the gigantic walls and rigidity of Big Tech platforms. There's even a subreddit [2] for them!

I like to think of software projects as belonging in three categories - massive high growth products (big tech), more niche low growth products, and side-projects. Digital gardens and small software projects with a band of loyal users seem to go between side-project and niche product. They are a welcome escape from the noise of big platforms, so I hope this developer/Internet trend catches on across the web.

[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24996780

[2] https://www.reddit.com/r/DigitalGardens/

Re: My product is my garden

#32

Post by jwr » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 8:50 AM UTC

This is how I approach my SaaS business. Long-term sustainability, enjoyable development using technologies I like, dealing with smart and nice customers. Caring for the app.

Re: My product is my garden

#33

Post by qwantim1 » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 8:56 AM UTC

elliotec wrote: post #28

I love this and I aspire to eventually, if I come out of the grinder with any ambition, drive, or passion left, do something similar. I abhor big corpratism, and love the way software can be independent and disconnected from it, if not usually in practice. I deeply admire Basecamp's style of "you don't need VC money, keep it small, keep building something useful that gets you paid." I want that someday but someday is…

Is Basecamp really the example to aspire to? Being the developer of Rails and ActiveRecord and fostering and milking that would be the software equivalent of Peter Frampton, and I mean that in the most positive way.

I think we know that we’re not all going platinum. This article was about just “working on the song(s)” for the enjoyment of it, whatever that may involve, or that’s the way I took it.

Re: My product is my garden

#34

Post by erikstarck » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 8:59 AM UTC

This is a beautiful analogy.

One of my favourite quotes is from Jane McGonical: "we are as human beings designed to do hard, meaningful work". If you enjoy gardening, it doesn't feel like work. You do it because it's... meaningful.

Ikigai is that perfect spot in which the work you enjoy doing also creates value from someone else. You are in the zone, doing what you love.

This concept, together with the one about optimising your area of luck that was posted a few days ago, are all you really need to craft a successful - and joyful - career.

Re: My product is my garden

#35

Post by LeonB » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:01 AM UTC

equality_1138 wrote: post #15

Love the garden analogy in software, especially when faced with complex systems that can't easily be managed by rigid IT project management styles. Was reminded of another short piece going way back to 2007: https://signalvnoise.com/posts/591-brainstorm-the-software-g...

You did well to retrieve that one from the memory banks! Must’ve left an impression.

I think I read it too.

Re: My product is my garden

#36

Post by benjaminjosephw » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:03 AM UTC

Where are there online communities for people into this kind of tech sub-culture? Most Indie Hacker type communities seem to eventually attract a critical mass of "Hustle Boys" and most startup communities tend to be dismissive of anything that doesn't have hyper-growth potential. It makes sense that a large number of tech entrepreneurs live between these two extremes. Where do they hang out?

Re: My product is my garden

#37

Post by friseurtermin » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:05 AM UTC

elliotec wrote: post #28

I love this and I aspire to eventually, if I come out of the grinder with any ambition, drive, or passion left, do something similar. I abhor big corpratism, and love the way software can be independent and disconnected from it, if not usually in practice. I deeply admire Basecamp's style of "you don't need VC money, keep it small, keep building something useful that gets you paid." I want that someday but someday is…

I feel the same way. Even if you have a lot of ideas, as I'm sure everyone has, how would you decide on the "right" one to pour all your energy into?

Re: My product is my garden

#38

Post by ghoomketu » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:12 AM UTC

tangjurine wrote: post #9

ghoomketu wrote: post #5

I am on the same page with you. But I've also decided to focus all my strength on one thing for the next 5 years just improving it and making it the best product for my customers. Right now it's so easy to make apps with amazing frameworks like Vue and Laravel that anybody can create something in a week or sometimes even a day[1]. We indiehackers are never short of ideas and shiny objects. I too was part of that move…

What is your main project?

It's a tool to create videos using just text, called Buzzvid. You can play with the demo here (1).

I'm still working on the homepage, tutorials, etc. It's still a month until launch. Don't want to hijack this thread but if you have any feedback, please send it to the email in my HN profile.

(1) https://buzzvid.com/members.html

Re: My product is my garden

#39

Post by erwinh » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:24 AM UTC

Really feeling this, got so much work done last year by just continuously smoothing out all kinds of small little details in my parametric design software tools. Which individually are all quite insignificant but now it really starts to feel like an ecosystem (garden!) of functions, classes & objects working together in concert for beautiful effects.

Re: My product is my garden

#40

Post by erwinh » Thu, Feb 04, 2021, 9:28 AM UTC

benjaminjosephw wrote: post #36

Where are there online communities for people into this kind of tech sub-culture? Most Indie Hacker type communities seem to eventually attract a critical mass of "Hustle Boys" and most startup communities tend to be dismissive of anything that doesn't have hyper-growth potential. It makes sense that a large number of tech entrepreneurs live between these two extremes. Where do they hang out?

I think you can find it in the crossover towards more artistic/design/science focussed communities. Generative art, data visualisation etc. Of course there are hustlers there as well but to me it does feel to be more about the creativity, techniques, ideas.