Notes
on one word a day, and building it this way
What I can't see
Here is a strange thing to admit about the app I just launched: I don't know how you're using it.…
Why there are no numbers in the forest
Every social feature I've ever used eventually turned into a scoreboard. It never announces itself that way. It starts as a nice idea — let people see each other — and then someone…
Twelve trees, one year
A tree can only hold so much before it stops meaning anything. I found this out by building the wrong version first.…
A hard day is not a broken streak
Somewhere along the way, apps that were meant to help us feel better adopted the emotional mechanics of a gym teacher. Streaks. Badges. A little flame that dies if you have the wro…
Your words never leave your phone
Most apps say "we take your privacy seriously." Here's what Kodama says instead: **we never receive your words, so there is nothing for us to take seriously.**…
Why one word
Every journaling app I ever installed died the same way. Not dramatically — quietly. Day one, three paragraphs. Day four, one paragraph, mostly apology. Day nine, the notification …