Ask HN: If this was your last project, what would you build?

[ff12wq111]

I've been thinking about legacy lately. If you knew this was the last thing you'd ever build as a developer, what would it be?

Not your most profitable idea. Not the safest bet. But the thing that would make you feel like you used your skills for something that mattered.

If this were my last project, I think I'd want to leave behind a truly democratic, community-driven platform where developers from all backgrounds could freely exchange ideas and knowledge.

This platform would be open source. Every community member could contribute to its development. Every contribution - whether code, insights, or helping others - would convert into Stars, which represent voting power. All community members could use their Stars to vote on the platform's future direction.

I'd want this platform to continuously self-evolve, adapting and serving developers while maintaining permanent democracy and independence. Something that could keep pace with the times, evolving alongside technology and the community itself.

Maybe it's idealistic, but if it's your last shot, why not try to solve something that's bothered you for years? Every developer community I've loved eventually loses its soul to power concentration and politics.

What would your final project be?

[muzani]

Most likely interactive fiction, but made more interactive with LLMs or something.

You guys can save the world; I've had enough of that in my career. I started programming to build simulations. I put simulations in my MIT application essay. I started playing with sensors and apps to build simulations and have handheld computers. I didn't intend to be making fintech stuff and crime fighting tools. I just wanted to make little pocket cities and super interactive stuff.

[ff12wq111]

Love this perspective! Interactive fiction with LLMs sounds fascinating - there's something powerful about creating engaging experiences rather than just "saving the world."

Your point about making things more interactive really resonates. I think you're right that it could spark more curiosity and engagement, especially in younger people.

Do you have any demos or examples of what you're building? Would love to see how you're combining traditional interactive fiction with modern AI.

[ankitg12]

Something which would help me be "aware" in real life of finite ness of life. Like the computer break utils (TimeOut on Mac/ Stretchly etc) which can help disconnect from the screen in front of you, even for a bit of time, and force you outside of whatever you are currently engaged on in the screen.

[muzani]

There's stuff like https://www.rescuetime.com/ which both forces you to stop and makes you aware of what you're using the screen for.

[gethly]

The project i am working on right now: gethly.com - a hosting and sales platform for digital content creators(paywall, similar to patreon). It is done, I am just continuing working on it(liked adding mobile UI today/tomorrow or soon supporting content hosted elsewhere). I first touched html 25 years ago, so I have been in the programming and internet "game" for quite some time and have seen how the internet has changed. And so I do not think I will be doing any more projects. I think I have reached the end of my road and this is it for me as I do not see internet being business-viable any longer. Certainly not like it used to be in the golden days of 2000s and 2010s, before Facebook and Tinder. That is where it all started to go to shit(not saying it is related, just the time frame).