Scrape your kids' slow school app and feed updates to your AI calendar
A retiree has AI write software for his own life. His kids' school app was painfully slow, so he had AI write something that logs in, pulls new updates and feeds them to the AI that manages his calendar and to-do list.
Source
KPGv2 on Hacker News · 2026-10-16
Written in our own words. Credit to the original author. Link checked 2026-10-23.
What they did
A retiree has AI write software for his own life. His kids' school app was painfully slow, so he had AI write something that logs in, pulls new updates and feeds them to the AI that manages his calendar and to-do list.
Result (as claimed)
Written by AI in about ten minutes.
Tools they used
Cost: Pricing depends on the tools you pick; check each official pricing page.
Set it up
Define the job
Say exactly what you want done and what the agent may and may not do on your behalf.
Share only what is needed
Give AI coding agent the minimum files or access required. Avoid sharing passwords in chat when a safer login flow exists.
Review the plan
Ask the agent to show its plan or draft before it acts, and approve each step that has real consequences.
Check the result
Confirm the outcome yourself (order placed, request sent, document understood) and keep a record.
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: Scrape your kids' slow school app and feed updates to your AI calendar What the original author did: A retiree has AI write software for his own life. His kids' school app was painfully slow, so he had AI write something that logs in, pulls new updates and feeds them to the AI that manages his calendar and to-do list. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Written by AI in about ten minutes. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50118040 Tools they used: AI coding agent, Calendar Category: Personal & life 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: Scrape your kids' slow school app and feed updates to your AI calendar What the original author did: A retiree has AI write software for his own life. His kids' school app was painfully slow, so he had AI write something that logs in, pulls new updates and feeds them to the AI that manages his calendar and to-do list. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Written by AI in about ten minutes. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50118040 Tools they used: AI coding agent, Calendar Category: Personal & life 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: Scrape your kids' slow school app and feed updates to your AI calendar What the original author did: A retiree has AI write software for his own life. His kids' school app was painfully slow, so he had AI write something that logs in, pulls new updates and feeds them to the AI that manages his calendar and to-do list. Reported result (as claimed by the author): Written by AI in about ten minutes. Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50118040 Tools they used: AI coding agent, Calendar Category: Personal & life 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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Guides for this use case
How to build private apps just for yourself with AI · How to vibe code classroom apps and quizzes as a teacher · How to set up an AI family assistant · How to build apps and games for your kids with AI
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