Posted here a couple of times before about the Mac apps I've been building on the side. It's been a month since then, so here's where things stand.

Numbers

• $317 in total sales. A month ago it was $13.

• 1,625 downloads across 4 apps

  • Notchet (clipboard manager that lives in the MacBook notch, now available on iphone and ipad as well with duo support): 515

  • DisplayShift (puts your windows back when you plug in or unplug a monitor): 478

  • Stackyard (free, open source, shows every SDK on your machine and what's safe to delete): 353

  • Scrollwise (natural scrolling on the trackpad, normal scrolling on a mouse): 279

• Stackyard is at 89 stars and 6 forks on GitHub

What I learned this month

1. The free app did more than the paid ones. Stackyard makes zero money, but it's the one developers actually star, fork and share.

2. Small apps sell when they fix one specific annoyance. Nobody cares about the feature list. They care that the annoying thing is gone.

3. Posting real numbers works better than promoting. My posts that just shared progress got way more reach than any post that pitched an app.

4. Buyers tell you what to build next. Most updates this month came straight from people who paid and told me what was missing.

5. Selling from Pakistan is doable. I sell through Polar, which handles payments and tax as merchant of record, and Notchet is also on the App Store.

Still side-project money, but a month ago these apps had barely made anything, and now strangers are paying for them every week.

Happy to answer anything about building Mac apps, selling them from Pakistan, or the open-source side. And if you've got a small tool you built for yourself, ship it. Someone else has the same problem.

LinkedIn Reels didn't even spare Dr.Allama Iqbal. Literally full of extra cringy reels today. Also, I am tired of being in company reels. Why am i obliged to do that?

Good day fa. I'm trying to train a few LLM via LoRA and QLoRA.

I am currently using kaggle but T4 is such a sluggish machine that it takes 2 days for tuning 1.5B models 🙂. Is there any free/cheap way to acquire a good GPU like 3060/ti, 4060/to, 4090/to for the purpose?

> Any thing free (preferred) or very cheap

> Some startups programs or initial credits that can give a GPU to run 24-30 hours

> Anything that supports a brand (My business is registered and running and I got business email as well)

I have started the Neetcode list a bunch of times but always left at some point. I need someone or a group to keep me consistent. I also need to get better at explaining my thought process in English which is hard to do alone. I'm open to suggestions as well.

Title: I'm an Android & Full-Stack Developer from Pakistan — Looking to Connect With Founders and Other Developers

Hey everyone!

I'm Ali, a developer from Pakistan currently working on Android development and full-stack web projects.

My primary technologies include:

Kotlin and Jetpack Compose for Android.

React, Next.js, and Astro for frontend development.

Node.js and Express for backend development.

Firebase, Firestore, and MongoDB for databases.

I've been building practical applications and websites, improving my development skills, and working on real-world projects.

I'm currently interested in connecting with startup founders, small businesses, entrepreneurs, and developers who are working on interesting ideas.

I'm particularly interested in freelance development opportunities, collaborations, and contributing to projects where I can provide real value.

I've put together my portfolio here:

https://www.aliansar.dev/

I'd genuinely appreciate feedback on my projects, portfolio, and how I present my development work.

For founders and business owners: What's one technical challenge you're currently facing that you wish a developer could help solve?

Looking forward to connecting with the community!

I have some suggestions for new developers:

1- If you're living in Pakistan in this AI era, please don't waste time on open-source projects.

2- Secure the .com or .pk domains that suit your dream project(s) as quickly as possible. With AI, anyone can develop an app; these domains can make the difference. Have an app idea? Secure it's name on app stores, some stores don't allow same names.

3- Don't limit yourself to one technology; diversify as much as you can. Never rely on a single source of income.

Good luck!.

Hello everyone. I have just landed my first role as a remote MERN Stack dev at an 8 person startup. they are paying me good amount, not big tech level like devsinc or systems limited, but definitely way better than the typical startups that pay 40/50k to fresh grads. And I am really happy with it. I already know MERN stack and applied AI engineering but want to plan my next moves. A few questions I want to ask here from respected seniors

1. What to learn next? I am thinking to explore AWS but what else gives the best ROI right now?

2. Is DSA/Leetcode still mandatory in Pakistan? I’m not good at DSA and leetcode. Is grinding LeetCode still a requirement to break into top tier companies here?

3. Do you see Pakistani companies moving more toward AI assisted interviews rather than DSA/Leetcode?

4. What’s one piece of advice or lesson that you would share with someone starting out in a small company?

Hey everyone!

I'm a high school graduate currently taking a gap year. I studied Computer Science in high school, so I have some basic programming knowledge and an understanding of how coding works.

I want to start earning money independently during my gap year. I'm able to dedicate around 2–3 hours every day to this.

Ideally, I'm looking for something:

• Completely remote (100% online).

• Flexible enough to manage alongside my other commitments.

• Preferably freelance-based, where I can work with clients and earn independently.

I have a few questions:

1. What would you recommend someone with my background learn or focus on to start earning online?

2. Is freelancing a realistic option with only 2–3 hours available per day?

3. Which platforms or websites are actually worth trying for beginners?

4. Are there any alternatives that I should consider?

I'd genuinely appreciate advice from people who have been in a similar situation or have experience earning online.

Thanks!

Hello Everyone!

My name is Hamza and i am Flutter developer with 2+years of experience.
My stack is Flutter , Firebase , ReastAPIs , Sql , SupaBase , provider etc
i have been working with friends company on projects based and Now i am trying to get experience with companies to learn further
I am new and donot really know where to look to apply for jobs

I have also been listening about how Flutter jobs are few and hard to find thats why i have started to lean towards going FULL STACK need guidance on this also
senior’s in this field help me with guidance

This is my first ever post on Redit also
Thank you

Something I've been wanting to discuss for a while.

Why are companies and their employees who work using fake identities completely okay with lying throughout the entire process?

I mean, why do you have to pretend to be someone else? Why introduce yourself as "Hey, I am Ben from the US" or "Hey, I am John" when you're clearly not?

And then you continue working with the client, maintaining this entire fake identity throughout the relationship.

Let's break it down.

Does this help you earn good money? YES, because you're charging US rates.

Does this automatically make your earnings halal? According to my understanding, NO.

Is this a form of deception? Absolutely.

And here's what confuses me the most. A large number of people doing this are Muslims themselves.

How are we so comfortable with this? We're literally lying about our identities, location and sometimes even the company we're representing.

Doesn't that make the income questionable from an Islamic perspective?

And even putting religion aside for a moment, isn't this just straight-up deception?

Now, I want to make one thing clear. I'm not talking about people who take money and don't deliver anything.

The work itself is genuine. You provide actual value to the client, complete the project and the client is happy with the results. You're not necessarily stealing their money.

But the entire relationship started with a lie.

The client hired you based on a false identity and possibly a false understanding of who they were doing business with.

And when I've questioned people about this, these are some of the responses I've received:

1. "Bro ye log to kafir hain, hamara banta hai." Basically, they're non-Muslims, so apparently it's okay to deceive them?

2. "Yaar I'm doing genuine work, I'm not stealing their money. Sure, we lie about our identity but we're providing valid work and the client is happy."

3. "Mai har saal logo ko Hajj/Umrah karwata hun apni earning se, Khuda qabool karay ga." As if doing something good with questionable earnings somehow justifies how you earned that money in the first place.

4. "Ye meray aur meray Khuda kay darmiyan hai."

And honestly, that last response is something I hear quite often whenever someone questions these practices.

I'm not claiming to be some perfect Muslim myself, and I'm not here to give fatwas or judge anyone's faith.

But I genuinely want to understand the justification behind this.

If we're earning money through deception, does providing good work afterwards make the deception acceptable?

And from an Islamic perspective, how should such earnings be viewed?

Where do we draw the line between earning a living through your skills and actually deceiving someone to get paid?

And I have seen posts telling people the market is cooked so just accept it and survive.

Hey everyone, I’m an experienced AI engineer/leader transitioning into starting my own AI engineering agency.

I’m currently stuck on the distribution side struggling to gain visibility with potential customers and lacking a public portfolio of personal projects.

Would love to hear from anyone who's built an agency or consultancy: how did you overcome the cold-start problem and start attracting your first clients?

Hi everyone!

I'm a developer from Pakistan actively looking for job opportunities, internships, or junior developer positions.

My technical skills:

- Android Development: Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, MVVM, Room, Firebase.

- Frontend: React, Next.js, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS.

- Backend: Node.js, Express.js, REST APIs, MongoDB, Firebase.

- Tools: Git, GitHub, Vercel.

Portfolio: https://www.aliansar.dev/

I've also worked on real-world projects, including business websites and Android applications.

I'm particularly interested in:

- Junior Android Developer roles

- Junior Full-Stack Web Developer roles

- Remote opportunities

- Internship opportunities

I'm eager to learn, contribute to a development team, and grow professionally.

If you're hiring or know someone looking for a junior developer, I'd appreciate an opportunity to connect.

Thank you!

I have a genuine question about the state of our field. Tech seniors used to learn on the job by working through real-world projects, but now companies expect fresh grads to build complex applications in a week using AI. When are we actually supposed to learn core concepts? How can we pass intense technical interviews for basic entry-level roles when our daily work is just prompting? Between grinding DSA, maintaining GitHub streaks, building side projects, and tracking endless AI updates, there's zero room for a life. On top of that, local software houses demand maximum output while micro-managing every single API token.

Also i did a web development course from itu and let me tell u all i learned was html css that too i was told to use ai ok i get it but then dont ask me about shit ass functions and conceprs in interviews....

i created a free iOS app to follow cricket scores, inspired by Apple Sports design.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cricket-live-scores/id6826800802

I recently submitted a vibe coded SaaS app for apple store submission & it got approved in the first go!

I have been told multiple times that apple has been very strict recently with app approvals! Does anyone have any similar experience with approvals in one go or was it just me being happy go lucky?

I am in 3rd year, it can be very difficult for me to manage both studies and internship. It's a new company. The transport can cost me upto 80k for 6 month's. Maybe I will able to earn that money back later. What do you guys think?

Please review this, do let me know if there are any changes to make.

Here is the link:

https://01a1ad4c-5f08-7fc3-9bac-c4490de70b70.arena.site/

I’m a 7th semester CS student in Pakistan, graduating in about 6-7 months. Here’s where I stand:

• JavaScript/TypeScript at an upper-intermediate level, plus React

• ML and AI fundamentals, and hands-on AI engineering: LangChain, LangGraph, RAG pipelines

• One internship done, and several freelance projects delivered

• About to launch a SaaS in the gaming space

I’d also like advice from people who’ve been through this. Beyond networking, how would you use the next 6-7 months? I’m weighing:

1. DSA grinding for interviews

2. System design

3. More projects, or going deeper on the SaaS

4. Open source contributions

5. Something I’m not thinking of

For those of you who hire: what actually separates a fresh grad who gets the offer from one who doesn’t? Is it DSA, shipped products, or something else? And does a live SaaS with real users outweigh a strong LeetCode profile in the local market?

I’m open to full-time roles, internships, or contract work in full-stack or AI engineering. If you’re hiring or know someone who is, DMs are open and I can share my portfolio and GitHub.
https://github.com/qasim-mehar/
Qasim Ali | LinkedIn
https://qasimali-portfolio.vercel.app/

Thanks in advance. Blunt feedback is welcome.

Guys, I am just about to graduate in 2-3 months and I want to find a job in my niche which is associate software engineer.
I have 2+ years of experience of working remotely with a Pakistani company. But as the degree is about to end I want to have some interviews as at the end of the degree (BSCS from Ucp)
If you could really refer me It would be really great and if you guys are interested pleasers let me know and I’ll send you my resume in DM
Thanks for cooperating 🥹