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Mackser

272 karma · joined December 10, 2014

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Mackser··on A Simple Guide to Calm UI
I pushed an update to improve the mobile experience a bit. It's a bit awkward because of the simulated modals that are displayed inline. Can you give it a test and see if it's still giving you trouble? Thanks!
Mackser··on A Simple Guide to Calm UI
Fair point, I'll look into that. Thanks!
Mackser··on Self-updating screenshots
Super cool! Love that you can declare the screenshots inline in the markdown document.

For my desktop app I created a solution that generates screenshots in multiple languages, light/dark mode, removes noise and adds Windows/macOS window frames.

Wrote about it here: https://maxschmitt.me/posts/cakedesk-website-redesign#screen...

It's currently a separate script (which is a pain to maintain). I should look into making it a part of the markdown/mdx. Thanks for the inspiration!

Mackser··on Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (March 2026)
Cakedesk: Fast & simple invoicing app for small businesses (Windows & Mac).

Been working on this for about 4 years. It has some cool features, like letting you create your own PDF templates with HTML/CSS. Most users love that it's so simple and just a one-time purchase.

Currently thinking about how to implement an Obsidian-style cloud sync feature since that gets requested a lot.

https://cakedesk.app

Mackser··on Resizing windows on macOS Tahoe – the saga continues
Easy Move+Resize is great for this on macOS: https://github.com/dmarcotte/easy-move-resize
Mackser··on How I am deeply integrating Emacs
Are there any good videos showcasing a productive Emacs setup like this and how it's used for everyday tasks?
Mackser··on One-time purchase alternatives to popular subscription tools
I love sites like this. I'm always looking for more apps that let me keep using them even if I stop paying for updates. Adding a $10 monthly subscription will stop me from using most products but I'll gladly pay $100+ for some quality software that I can keep
Mackser··on Dokku: My favorite personal serverless platform
I've been using Dokku for many years. It's remarkably stable and easy to use. I wrote an extensive tutorial on how to deploy various apps and websites with Dokku in 2018 [1] and I'm sure that following the same steps still works 6 years later.

1: https://maxschmitt.me/posts/tutorial-deploy-apps-websites-do...

Mackser··on Toasts are bad UX
I haven't heard many developers/designers talk about the overused practice of using toasts for UI feedback.

The post shares a few real-world examples and illustrates some of the problems with how they use toasts.

What do you think? Are toasts overused? In which cases do you use them in your own apps?

Mackser··on Show HN: I made a free animator. Think Adobe Illustrator but for animation
This looks really well done! I was able to create a simple animation easily even though I don't know anything about animation software.

By the way, your "Features" page is really well made. I would showcase those features on the homepage. I didn't find the list of features until I clicked the link in one of your comments on HN.

You can also make your project more appealing on the homepage by including a looping demo animation (to see what's possible) and a screenshot of the tool.

Best of luck with the project!

Mackser··on Show HN: Invoice Dragon – An open source app to create PDF invoices
This is really well made! I know from my experience building Cakedesk [1] that the requirements of invoices vary greatly from country to country and from user to user.

Some things you can add to appeal to more people that are useful to most:

* Keep track of clients and personal info so the user doesn't have to type the address / invoice IDs every time

* Allow users to keep track of which items are paid/unpaid

* Allow users to declare sales tax on the invoices

* Allow users to upload their own HTML-based invoice designs

* Allow users to add subitems to items

Good luck with the project, it looks well-made and it will be useful for many people!

[1]: https://cakedesk.app

Mackser··on Show HN: Invoice Dragon – An open source app to create PDF invoices
I started similarly. I had built a really simple HTML template for my invoices and I generated them using some CLI scripts and Airtable as a database (to keep track of customer addresses, invoice IDs, etc.).

I didn't want to use a full-on accounting tool where everything is kept in the cloud with expensive monthly subscriptions and using Word or something along those lines also didn't work for me.