michelle_
Joined 14 years ago
Karma
173
Submissions
19
Member since
May 15
Recent submissions
Comment · 14 years ago
In the post you're replying to I said: "I also live with a software developer who helped bail me out from time to time", and I linked to the html5helicopter.com page which links to that blog post. I wasn't trying to hide anything and didn't mean to be misleading. I'm sorry if I caused any confusion. Nathan helped teach me to code, but DailyDo.it is my own creation.
Comment · 14 years ago
I've had some thought on this. The issue that I see with auto-focusing is people who use backspace to go back in the browser. If I steal focus then they're just stuck there, mashing on backspace.
As a compromise I implemented arrow key functionality. The down arrow focuses the input field when you're on the Daily tab. The left and right keys also scroll between days/months. I realize that at this point there is absolutely no indication of those features on the site, so consider it an Easter Egg for now. :)
Comment · 14 years ago
I had it like that for a while, but ran into problems once I introduced the double-click-to-edit functionality. Thanks for the suggestion though; I'm still working on improving the user experience. :)
Comment · 14 years ago
Not quite zero. This past semester I took a course in MATLAB which was fairly unrelated, but definitely helped me get comfortable with programming a real project (we did bridge design in the course). I also live with a software developer who helped bail me out from time to time. DailyDo.it was started on April 29th, and I worked long days since then to get it up to what you see now. During the weekend before that I made http://html5helicopter.com to get familiar with JS. I've played around with HTML and CSS before, but always found the process frustrating and overwhelming when trying to make a whole website from scratch; this time I started with a micro-framework that helped me focus on the actual app.
As for anyone who was in my position (limited coding knowledge and not a pro-designer) I would definitely recommend starting from a cheap themeforest design and building up on that. Also, start small and focus. The idea of DailyDo.it was actually conceived last year, but I tried to do way too much with it, and ultimately it amounted to nothing of value. Just piles of bad designs and funky, non-functioning UI, never mind getting to code. This summer I started from scratch (which cleared my mind up), plus I was able to focus on it full-time, and everything just kind of clicked.
I think I just used the word "focus" three times in this post. That's the key. :)
Comment · 14 years ago
Haha I originally added that as a joke but it grew on me. I'm glad you liked it! I appreciate your kind comment, and I've always felt the same way about to-do lists: they never get done. I hope that my app can help people be productive. :)
Comment · 14 years ago
I am at a loss for words. Thanks so much for your kind comment; it is inspiring and motivating. When I posted this on HN I really wasn't expecting such overwhelmingly positive feedback from so many great people! In a few short weeks I've found that the internet can be a very rewarding place. I'm not sure where I'll end up at this point, but for now I'm enjoying web development very much. Thanks again! :)
Comment · 14 years ago
Hah, I hadn't thought of that. I agree though, it needs to be much more obvious if I'm expecting people to actually find it! I'll play around with it, thanks :)
Comment · 14 years ago
That's a really good point - I'd like to add that. For now, today should be faintly highlighted on the calendar popup, but I agree that a more obvious "today" button would make it easier. You can also carry forward all unfinished tasks to today on the Monthly view, if that's your intention.
Comment · 14 years ago
Thanks, I'll take these suggestions into consideration. One of the hardest parts about putting together the app was finding a balance between power usage and first impressions. Having used it for the past few days while developing it, I've found the add-task at the bottom to be effective, but it's great to hear other opinions from people who aren't as accustomed to the app as I am.
Comment · 14 years ago
Thank you :)
Comment · 14 years ago
Thanks! The design started as a themeforest template, but at this point it has been very heavily modified. I used PHP and MySQL for the backend, and jQuery for the UI interaction.
I'm a chemistry major spending the summer learning to code, so this is all a learning experience. It's only been about 3 weeks so I'm happy to have gotten something functional out of it. I'm really hoping to get some good feedback from HN.
The about page on DailyDo.it genuinely describes what I set out to make. I have spent 3 years in university trying to keep track of everything I have to do; the result is usually a big mess of tasks on notepaper, my whiteboard, post-it notes, etc. I've tried using online versions, but they all seem so complicated and messy, which is the opposite of what I want. DailyDo.it is meant to be as simple as possible - the challenge of maintaining simplicity was certainly a surprise, but I think it worked out well enough.
As for the next steps, I'm aiming to have the team version (http://dailydo.it/about/team) up and running very soon. This will be a paid service that allows teams of people to share and collaborate on their tasks.
Comment · 14 years ago
Thanks for the suggestion, I'll definitely keep it in mind.
Comment · 14 years ago
Thank you! I used PHP and MySQL for the backend and jQuery for the front. :)
Comment · 14 years ago
I'm currently trying to keep the app simple and clutter-free, so it's been a challenge not to pack it full of every feature that comes to mind. Sublists would definitely make it onto the feature-list; I think they're handy and my first prototype had infinite sublists. At this point, I'm not sure how I could integrate that in, but I'll keep it in mind. Thanks for your comment!
(Also, left/right arrows allow you to traverse days or months, and the down arrow focuses the add-task field.)
Projects: http://centralharbor.com, http://thinkellie.com, http://dailydo.it, http://html5helicopter.com
Get in touch: http://michelleontheweb.com/contact