Packstack
Backpacking packing lists
After much deliberation, I made the decision to open source Packstack's codebase. I was initially hesitant to do this because it makes it much easier for other developers to spawn copycat projects. The upside, however, is that developers have been contributing code that makes the core product better.
My plan is to maintain the open-source codebase and continue developing requested features. While I do this, I'll also be developing a native app for Packstack.
The app will be available on iOS and Android, though I haven't determined if it will be a freemium model with in-app upgrades or a flat price. In the meantime, Packstack.io will help me build up a following that I'll be able to leverage once I release the app.
The first version of Packstack was, technically speaking, pretty simple. The next release will be more complex. Many of the features users requested required alterations to the database.
I decided to use NodeJS with express and sequelize for this project. In the past, I've used Python with flask and sqlalchemy, but I wanted to take the opportunity to learn something new.
This past weekend, I finally wrapped up most of the database modifications and wrote the migration scripts. This last part – writing the migration scripts – was something I was dreading for a long time. Sequelize has a cli migration tool but it's not bulletproof and requires you to have a solid understanding of the underlying technology if you're deviating from the docs at all.
Anyways, I'm happy to say that I've emerged from the pit of database migrations. I documented my steps and wrote some custom scripts so that when I return to the land of migrations, which is unavoidable, it'll go much more smoothly.
After working on the project locally for several months, I finally launched Packstack on r/Ultralight.
I had very few expectations as to what the "launch" would bring, but I was blown away by the response. The post had over 200 comments with incredibly detailed feedback from community members. Clearly, this had some interest.
The exposure produced more than 400 sign ups, and many of the initial users have kept coming back. Since the launch, I've added analytics and implemented Mailchimp. I've also created a long backlog of features to build out.
6 Comments
Cool! I am considering doing the same, mainly for the purpose of getting more users into our ecosystem and of course hopefully code contributions.
Curious what swung the decision to do it after all the deliberation?
Basically, people were telling me they wanted to contribute, I was starting to get burnt out and there wasn't a clear monetization strategy.
Gotcha, so you'll monetize through the app only then? This is the topic I'm deliberating on too, whether to monetize by charging for specific features, or by some sort of service but of course, these things are hard to scale.
Good luck with your new direction!
I wanted to create a SaaS platform but it doesn't make sense for this specific application. What's the project you're working on?
I see. It is a real time bidder for placing ads. Very unusual product to open source but we believe in it :) Right now we run it as a managed campaign service, only so much scale there. We want to get more people using it self-serve and also continue generating revenue.
Cool, I like the concept. I've followed you and your project – looking forward to future updates! And let me know if you do open source it 🤘