Resources

Free tools and guides

For anyone deciding whether to build software, planning what it should do, or building it. Free to use, with no sign-up.

• Free toolBuild vs buy calculator →Five years of software subscriptions against owning custom software: growth, price rises, staff time, maintenance and present value, with every formula shown.
• Free templateSoftware scope template and ERP/CRM scorecard →Eleven sections to agree before anyone writes code, and a weighted scorecard for choosing between packages and a custom build.
• Guide · ArchitectureBuilding a bilingual, multi-company business system →Screen language kept apart from tax documents, Arabic on PDF invoices, several companies in one system, two desks on one database, and backups that survive.
• Guide · EngineeringCrash-proof job queues →Running many jobs at once across rate-limited accounts without exceeding a limit, running a job twice, or losing one in a crash. With code and test results.

Made by Syed Abdullah Shah, a web developer and software builder. Linking to any of these is welcome.