Build weekend micro-apps like a train departures app and an ad-free emoji picker
Tired of trackers and popups, he built umoji (an emoji picker), blug (a static blog generator that deploys to Cloudflare) and bartist, a real-time BART train departures iOS app, as weekend micro-projects.
Source
unix1 on Hacker News · 2026-10-21 · Project link
Written in our own words. Credit to the original author. Link checked 2026-10-23.
What they did
Tired of trackers and popups, he built umoji (an emoji picker), blug (a static blog generator that deploys to Cloudflare) and bartist, a real-time BART train departures iOS app, as weekend micro-projects.
Result (as claimed)
Three small tools he wanted, each replacing an annoying existing option.
Tools they used
Cost: Pricing depends on the tools you pick; check each official pricing page.
Set it up
Write a one-page brief
Describe the app in plain words: who it is for, the 3 core screens or actions, and what "done" looks like.
Start the project with your agent
Open AI coding agent and paste the brief. Ask it to propose a stack and a file plan before writing code.
Build one slice at a time
Ship the smallest working flow first, run it, then add features one by one. Commit after each working step.
Test it like a user
Click through on desktop and phone. Ask the agent to add basic tests and fix anything that breaks.
Check security and ship
Keep keys in environment variables, check auth and database rules, then deploy and share the link.
Copy the full setup prompt
Paste into your agent and it will walk you through the setup, asking before anything that sends, posts or spends.
You are helping me set up this AI use case end to end in Claude Code. Goal: Build weekend micro-apps like a train departures app and an ad-free emoji picker What the original author did: Tired of trackers and popups, he built umoji (an emoji picker), blug (a static blog generator that deploys to Cloudflare) and bartist, a real-time BART train departures iOS app, as weekend micro-projects. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Three small tools he wanted, each replacing an annoying existing option. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50175602 Tools they used: AI coding agent, iOS, Cloudflare Category: Vibe coding & apps Please: 1. Ask me 3 short questions about my situation (accounts I have, budget, what I want the output to look like). 2. Propose a step-by-step plan using these tools or cheaper alternatives, with the time and cost of each step. Use official pricing pages; say "check pricing" if unsure. 3. Then do the setup with me one step at a time, waiting for my OK before anything that sends messages, posts publicly, spends money or deletes data. 4. Finish with a checklist to run it again next time.
You are helping me set up this AI use case end to end in Codex. Goal: Build weekend micro-apps like a train departures app and an ad-free emoji picker What the original author did: Tired of trackers and popups, he built umoji (an emoji picker), blug (a static blog generator that deploys to Cloudflare) and bartist, a real-time BART train departures iOS app, as weekend micro-projects. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Three small tools he wanted, each replacing an annoying existing option. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50175602 Tools they used: AI coding agent, iOS, Cloudflare Category: Vibe coding & apps Please: 1. Ask me 3 short questions about my situation (accounts I have, budget, what I want the output to look like). 2. Propose a step-by-step plan using these tools or cheaper alternatives, with the time and cost of each step. Use official pricing pages; say "check pricing" if unsure. 3. Then do the setup with me one step at a time, waiting for my OK before anything that sends messages, posts publicly, spends money or deletes data. 4. Finish with a checklist to run it again next time.
You are helping me set up this AI use case end to end in Grok Bot. Goal: Build weekend micro-apps like a train departures app and an ad-free emoji picker What the original author did: Tired of trackers and popups, he built umoji (an emoji picker), blug (a static blog generator that deploys to Cloudflare) and bartist, a real-time BART train departures iOS app, as weekend micro-projects. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Three small tools he wanted, each replacing an annoying existing option. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50175602 Tools they used: AI coding agent, iOS, Cloudflare Category: Vibe coding & apps Please: 1. Ask me 3 short questions about my situation (accounts I have, budget, what I want the output to look like). 2. Propose a step-by-step plan using these tools or cheaper alternatives, with the time and cost of each step. Use official pricing pages; say "check pricing" if unsure. 3. Then do the setup with me one step at a time, waiting for my OK before anything that sends messages, posts publicly, spends money or deletes data. 4. Finish with a checklist to run it again next time.
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