cmc/cleberg.net

 1#+date: [2026-07-25 Sat 12:00:00]
 2#+title: Small Wins on the App Store
 3#+description: My first tips and 5-star ratings on the iOS apps I built for fun and open-sourced.
 4#+slug: app-store-small-wins
 5#+filetags: :development:ios:
 6
 7I wanted to briefly share a couple achievements I've experienced lately from
 8the apps I've published on the iOS app store.
 9
10If you're new to my blog: I'm not a full-time developer and don't do this for a
11living. I develop sites, apps, etc. for fun as a hobby. I open-source everything
12I create so others can share or fork as they please, and I've never even
13included a tip option (until now - that iOS developer subscription is
14expensive!).
15
16* My Apps
17
18However, I've launched a few apps on the Apple app store in the last year:
19- [[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/domaindig/id6760368004][DomainDig]] ([[https://github.com/zerolabsco/domain-dig][Source]]) - A domain inspection toolkit for DNS, SSL, ports, etc.
20- [[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hutch-for-sourcehut/id6760742299][Hutch for Sourcehut]] ([[https://github.com/zerolabsco/hutch][Source]]) - A mobile client for SourceHut.
21- [[https://apps.apple.com/us/app/daybyday-learn/id6760321939][DayByDay]] ([[https://github.com/zerolabsco/daybyday][Source]]) - A children's app to learn various topics through
22  voice-enabled learning cards.
23
24I didn't expect anyone to really use these and I don't promote my apps anywhere.
25
26I created DayByDay for my daughter, as a flashcard-style app that would be easy
27for her to use and something we could do together in the small moments of the
28day.
29
30I created Hutch because I wanted a faster way to use SourceHut on the go,
31especially since I use private mode in Safari and am constantly logged out of my
32accounts. Hutch lets me read my mailing lists, manage tickets, and run builds
33wherever I want.
34
35Finally, I created DomainDig because I was lamenting the updates Njalla made to
36their [[https://check.njal.la/dns/][DNS Checker]] - it used to be a plain text page and is now wrapped in
37Njalla's branding and lacks some info I want when looking into a domain.
38
39* My Achievements
40
41I'm proud to announce two (baby-sized) achievements I didn't expect to happen:
42
431. I received my first two tips through the Hutch app! For a few dollars, two
44   people have made my whole month. It's extremely satisfying to know someone
45   used the app and found it valuable enough to voluntarily send some money my
46   way.
472. I received two 5-star ratings on the DomainDig app. Again, such a pleasure to
48   know people do appreciate the value that the app brings.
49
50I'm not going to pretend two tips and two ratings will change anything. I'll
51keep building these apps in the small moments the same way I always have,
52because that's the part I actually enjoy. But it's a nice reminder that "nobody
53will use this" isn't always true. Sometimes a stranger finds the thing you made
54for yourself and gets something out of it too.
55
56So, to the four of you: thank you. You made my month.