In late 2024, I started learning to code with the help of AI. I needed projects to work on, and I realized the best ones were the ones I made for other people.
The second app I ever built was for my wife. Since then, I've made apps for friends and family — small, specific tools designed for exactly one person. A tracker for someone who watches birds. A game for someone who loves puzzles. Things that would never make sense as a “product,” but that make perfect sense as a gift.
Every project forced me to learn something new.
Every project pushed me to pick up something I hadn't touched before — a new API, a database, a design problem I'd never solved. Building for someone specific meant I couldn't cut corners; the app had to actually work for them. That pressure was the best teacher I could have asked for.
And the people on the other end? They love it. There's something about getting a piece of software built just for you that hits different from any store-bought gift.
What this site is
This is a registry of software gifts — mine and, hopefully, yours. If you've built (or want to build) a piece of software for someone specific in your life, I'd love to see it.
It doesn't have to be complicated. It doesn't have to be polished. It just has to be something you made for someone, not for the market.
