Giving away a product for free builds a nice illusion of fast growth, but transitioning to paid later is honestly brutal. Users get so used to getting everything for zero cost that asking them to pay later changes their entire mindset from curious explorers to strict critics overnight. Looking back I wonder if starting with a small paid tier right from the beginning filters out the wrong crowd and saves you from that sudden growth cliff.
Have you tried charging from day one or did you also struggle moving away from a free model?
I am currently in my first year of study as a B.Tech in Computer Science and I am interested in finding out about different types of Artificial Intelligence (AI) based software applications and how they may be used to create real world projects.
Some of the ways that I would like to use AI-based tools are:
To learn coding and programming logic. To develop web sites, mobile Apps and other AI related projects. To use these tools to develop innovative ideas and solutions to problems at Hackathons. To turn an idea into a viable prototype using basic coding skills.
Every day, the PH feed is packed with shiny new SaaS tools most of them browser-based, many of them AI-infused. It s exciting, no doubt. But compared to a time not so long ago, something seems missing: local desktop apps.
They re rare now, and it makes me wonder are native apps still worth building, or have they quietly slipped into the realm of nostalgia?
After all, web apps offer clear benefits for both users and makers or investors. Users don t have to install anything, updates are seamless, and their data is accessible from any device with a browser. For investors, the advantages are just as compelling: a single tech stack, easier user onboarding, lock-in effects, and plenty of levers for driving growth and virality.
Ran the numbers on vendor/software spend at a few companies out of curiosity and honestly wasn't ready for it. Duplicate tools solving the same problem, licenses paid for months after nobody was using them, contracts that quietly auto-renewed because no one was watching!!. Has anyone else actually audited this at their own company? Curious if what I'm seeing is normal or if we just got unusually messy.
In client work I have seen it many times: a plugin, library or service that a site quietly depends on stops getting updates. Nothing breaks on the day, so it is easy to ignore, until a new version of something else makes it fail.
The options I know are replacing it early, forking it, wrapping it so it can be swapped later, or accepting the risk and watching it. Each one costs time that never shows up in a launch plan.
How many hours do you spend on crafting emails + replying to work messages everyday?
How many hours do you spend on tracking project progress and follow-ups everyday? I personally spend 2 hours on emails & messages, another 1 hour on project tracking. But maybe 1-2 hours joggling around tasks and wasted. Wonder if there's any good AI or SaaS tools to reduce the time spent on the above tasks?
