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2 Years of Programming Chess Apps: My Lessons

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@HollowLeaf I really like your tools and all, but how did you write the code without AI but used it to write the blog...

@HollowLeaf I really like your tools and all, but how did you write the code without AI but used it to write the blog...

@neinja007 said ^

@HollowLeaf I really like your tools and all, but how did you write the code without AI but used it to write the blog...

Simple really, I do use AI now as a productivity tool, but the key thing was not at the start. For the blog, I knew what I was going to say, so wrote the draft blog and then got AI to help edit it.

I don't think I would learn much by spending 2-3 hours editing a blog. I am not anti AI in any sense, but use AI is a productivity tool.

@neinja007 said [^](/forum/redirect/post/e6SD8lga) > @HollowLeaf I really like your tools and all, but how did you write the code without AI but used it to write the blog... Simple really, I do use AI now as a productivity tool, but the key thing was not at the start. For the blog, I knew what I was going to say, so wrote the draft blog and then got AI to help edit it. I don't think I would learn much by spending 2-3 hours editing a blog. I am not anti AI in any sense, but use AI is a productivity tool.

@WinOnePawn said ^

Thank you for this post. I have been meaning to build something mainly for myself and then releasing it for public at a later stage but I would always lose track because there are so many things to track. Now, I have some idea about how to begin my journey as a chess dev.

Feel free to reach out if you need someone to chat to about things, solo dev is tough, and there is a lot to learn, but it is an awesome journey.

Good luck.

@WinOnePawn said [^](/forum/redirect/post/7CB9CL7B) > Thank you for this post. I have been meaning to build something mainly for myself and then releasing it for public at a later stage but I would always lose track because there are so many things to track. Now, I have some idea about how to begin my journey as a chess dev. Feel free to reach out if you need someone to chat to about things, solo dev is tough, and there is a lot to learn, but it is an awesome journey. Good luck.

@Will_T_Riker said ^

Great blog, thank you for sharing - there are valuable lessons and insights here with wide applicability - My son is very interested in developing a new concept fishing app and there are some gold nuggets of tips and advice here. Cheers.

Indeed, these lessons apply to web/app dev in general, and hence why I wanted to share my experience, having been through it all, I wish your son the best of luck.

My best advice is to go for it, try, fail, try again, but above all else learn along the way.

@Will_T_Riker said [^](/forum/redirect/post/V0dnZxql) > Great blog, thank you for sharing - there are valuable lessons and insights here with wide applicability - My son is very interested in developing a new concept fishing app and there are some gold nuggets of tips and advice here. Cheers. Indeed, these lessons apply to web/app dev in general, and hence why I wanted to share my experience, having been through it all, I wish your son the best of luck. My best advice is to go for it, try, fail, try again, but above all else learn along the way.

@TotalNoob69 said ^

Great blog as always. I am a little envious!!

Also, you can get around all the financial issues by never monetizing anything ;-) Just lose money. It's so satisfying.

For a while now I have been fantasizing about pulling the chess devs together and maybe working on something larger. But it's just a fantasy for now. But it's great to see people like you and know I am not alone. Thanks!

Working on something larger is in it for me of course :) I am @GreatCoder1000 on GitHub, so please notify menif the dream comes true!

As for the blog, I have no words. It really deserved its place in the front page. Having the right balance between AI and “normal code” is just so important now in 2026. Just that now we think more about stuff like frameworks instead of the actual thing. I learnt coding in the analytical AI time, at a time when ChatGPT was probably in development, and I thus definitely didn’t use AI.

Now, I try to learn what AI suggests whenever I do use it. And that’s when I am 100% sure I do not know how to solve a bug.

I am also against AI slop. Yuck. Fah. Whatever.

If I need to use AI, I at least try to make sure I understand what it is doing, and try to regenerate the code myself (probably in my mind)

Extremely well-written blog.

@TotalNoob69 said [^](/forum/redirect/post/d23SloZa) > Great blog as always. I am a little envious!! > > Also, you can get around all the financial issues by never monetizing anything ;-) Just lose money. It's so satisfying. > > For a while now I have been fantasizing about pulling the chess devs together and maybe working on something larger. But it's just a fantasy for now. But it's great to see people like you and know I am not alone. Thanks! Working on something larger is in it for me of course :) I am @GreatCoder1000 on GitHub, so please notify menif the dream comes true! As for the blog, I have no words. It really deserved its place in the front page. Having the right balance between AI and “normal code” is just so important now in 2026. Just that now we think more about stuff like frameworks instead of the actual thing. I learnt coding in the analytical AI time, at a time when ChatGPT was probably in development, and I thus definitely didn’t use AI. Now, I try to learn what AI suggests whenever I do use it. And that’s when I am 100% sure I do not know how to solve a bug. I am also against AI slop. Yuck. Fah. Whatever. If I need to use AI, I at least try to make sure I understand what it is doing, and try to regenerate the code myself (probably in my mind) Extremely well-written blog.
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