{"version":"https://jsonfeed.org/version/1.1","title":"Contraption | Philip I. Thomas","home_page_url":"https://www.philipithomas.com","feed_url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/feed/contraption/feed.json","description":"Philip Thomas is an engineer in San Francisco who crafts digital tools.","authors":[{"name":"Philip I. Thomas","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com"}],"items":[{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/software-in-the-ai-era","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/software-in-the-ai-era","title":"Software in the AI era","summary":"On retiring the Contraption Company brand","date_published":"2026-03-20T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/software-in-the-ai-era.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/openclaw-is-my-new-coworker","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/openclaw-is-my-new-coworker","title":"OpenClaw is my new coworker","summary":"What happens when you give AI its own laptop","date_published":"2026-02-02T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/openclaw-is-my-new-coworker-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/trivet-adds-google-sign-in-to-ghost","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/trivet-adds-google-sign-in-to-ghost","title":"Trivet adds Google sign-in to 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Contraption Company","date_published":"2025-01-24T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/craft-in-the-digital-era-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/lost-and-found","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/lost-and-found","title":"Lost and found","summary":"2024 recap + what's next","date_published":"2025-01-10T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/lost-and-found-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/archetypes-of-llm-apps","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/archetypes-of-llm-apps","title":"Archetypes of LLM apps","summary":"What businesses are actually doing with AI","date_published":"2024-11-22T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/archetypes-of-llm-apps-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/bts-find-api","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/bts-find-api","title":"Behind the scenes of the Find 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APIs allow developers to interact with a product using code. There are many different ways to build an API, ...","date_published":"2024-11-14T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/bts-find-api-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/having-a-tj","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/having-a-tj","title":"Having a TJ","summary":"The importance of a passionate first customer","date_published":"2024-10-18T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/having-a-tj-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/distribution-vs-innovation","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/distribution-vs-innovation","title":"Innovation versus distribution","summary":"The race between startups and incumbents","date_published":"2024-10-11T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/distribution-vs-innovation-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/internal-tools-of-find-ai","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/internal-tools-of-find-ai","title":"Internal tools of Find AI","summary":"Technical presentation at an AI meetup","date_published":"2024-10-04T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/internal-tools-of-find-ai-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/wine-craft","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/wine-craft","title":"Wine craft","summary":"2024 harvest season in Alsace","date_published":"2024-09-27T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/wine-craft-cover.JPG","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/using-data-to-optimize-ai-apps","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/using-data-to-optimize-ai-apps","title":"How I use data to optimize AI apps","summary":"A video collaboration between Find AI and Velvet","date_published":"2024-09-24T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/using-data-to-optimize-ai-apps-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/is-fractional-work-the-future","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/is-fractional-work-the-future","title":"Is fractional work the future?","summary":"A conversation with Taylor Crane ","date_published":"2024-09-20T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/is-fractional-work-the-future-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-and-to-publish-an-indie-programming-book","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-and-to-publish-an-indie-programming-book","title":"How to self-publish a programming book","summary":"Ayush Newatia shares his  journey of making the Rails and Hotwire Codex","date_published":"2024-09-13T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/how-and-to-publish-an-indie-programming-book-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/the-next-iteration-of-contraption-company","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/the-next-iteration-of-contraption-company","title":"The next iteration of Contraption Company","summary":"From indiehacker back to venture-funded founder","date_published":"2024-09-06T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/the-next-iteration-of-contraption-company-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/tech-talent-agents","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/tech-talent-agents","title":"The opportunity of tech talent agents","summary":"With the shift to remote work, companies unlocked a global labor pool. Job posts began receiving hundreds of applications each. In the past months, AI tools accelerated this problem by enabling candid...","date_published":"2024-07-12T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/tech-talent-agents-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/almost-perfect","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/almost-perfect","title":"Before and after Almost Perfect","summary":"At the beginning of this year, I spent a couple of weeks at the Almost Perfect creative residence in Tokyo, run by Luis and Yuka. This week Luis and Yuka published a podcast we recorded during my resi...","date_published":"2024-07-08T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/almost-perfect-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/code-a-booklet-ai-feature","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/code-a-booklet-ai-feature","title":"Coding a Booklet AI feature","summary":"This morning, I added a new feature to Booklet. I used OpenAI to suggest new posts to write, to make it easier for members to post. It looks like this: Inspired by a podcast I was listening to on the ...","date_published":"2024-05-30T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/code-a-booklet-ai-feature-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/creator-vs-software-businesses","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/creator-vs-software-businesses","title":"Talking shop with Ben Weiss","summary":"Today I'm publishing a podcast with Ben Weiss about creator versus software businesses. While a student at Northwestern University, Ben founded Zcruit - a software for college football recruiting. Aft...","date_published":"2024-05-07T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/creator-vs-software-businesses-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-i-build-multiple-products","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-i-build-multiple-products","title":"How I build multiple products","summary":"I recently joined the SaaS Growth Podcast to talk about Contraption Company, product studios, and building multiple products like Booklet and Postcard. I think the interview covered some interesting t...","date_published":"2024-03-21T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/how-i-build-multiple-products-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/talking-shop-aaron-cohn-realnice","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/talking-shop-aaron-cohn-realnice","title":"Talking shop with Aaron Cohn from realnice","summary":"Today I'm publishing an conversation I had with Aaron Cohn for the Contraption Company podcast. Aaron is the co-founder of realnice, a simple personal website builder. realnice competes with my produc...","date_published":"2024-03-04T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/talking-shop-aaron-cohn-realnice-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/rethinking-work-beyond-the-factory","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/rethinking-work-beyond-the-factory","title":"Rethinking work beyond the factory","summary":"I recently completed a two-week creative residence at Almost Perfect in Tokyo. I split my time on the trip between working on Booklet and exploring Japan. The Almost Perfect residence runs continuousl...","date_published":"2024-02-27T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/rethinking-work-beyond-the-factory-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/digital-product-studios","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/digital-product-studios","title":"Digital product studios","summary":"I describe Contraption Company as a digital product studio. Many people ask what that means. \"Is it a startup?\" (not exactly). \"Is it an agency?\" (ideally, no). \"Do you make apps to spin them out into...","date_published":"2024-01-28T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/digital-product-studios-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/digital-quiet","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/digital-quiet","title":"Digital quiet","summary":"In the peak years of Bay Area tech offices, open offices were all the rage. As companies expanded, a physical division emerged between departments. Sales and support teams thrived in a buzzing atmosph...","date_published":"2023-12-20T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/digital-quiet-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/engineering-over-enforcement","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/engineering-over-enforcement","title":"Engineering over enforcement","summary":"In my introductory physics class, we replicated calculations by the Nobel Prize-winning physicist after whom our department was named. After returning from the Manhattan Project, this professor became...","date_published":"2023-12-14T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/engineering-over-enforcement-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/community-media-companies","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/community-media-companies","title":"Community-powered media companies","summary":"On a recent Arvid Kahl podcast, Channing Allen described Indiehackers.com as a \"community-powered media company.\" It's been weeks since I listened to the episode, but that idea of a community-powered ...","date_published":"2023-12-07T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/community-media-companies-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/booklet-architecture","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/booklet-architecture","title":"Booklet's architecture","summary":"Booklet is a modern email group software from Contraption Company. Think \"Google Groups,\" but with a modern interface and features. If you haven't tried Booklet, here is a 3-minute video showing how i...","date_published":"2023-12-04T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/booklet-architecture-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/indie-to-micro","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/indie-to-micro","title":"The transition from indiehacking to micro companies","summary":"With the launch of Indiehackers.com in 2016, a counter-culture of startups emerged seeking to build businesses without venture capital funding. The trend followed established independent companies suc...","date_published":"2023-11-17T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/indie-to-micro-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/one-year-of-dependable-software","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/one-year-of-dependable-software","title":"One year of dependable software","summary":"Today I'm introducing a new part of Contraption Company: Essays covering thoughts and opinions on online work, dependability, tools, and craft. My name is Philip, and I'm the founder and owner of Cont...","date_published":"2023-11-10T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/one-year-of-dependable-software-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/launching-booklet","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/launching-booklet","title":"Launching Booklet","summary":"We now recognize the downsides of social media platforms. But, when we start work for the day, we plug into a firehose of messages not dissimilar from Facebook's News Feed. While sitting on a Zoom cal...","date_published":"2023-09-20T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/launching-booklet-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/introducing-frctnl","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/introducing-frctnl","title":"Introducing FRCTNL","summary":"With the recent tech downturn, there's been a clear shift. Instead of the previous \"growth-at-all-costs\" model, companies are now emphasizing efficiency. This is evident in hiring, as firms now seek e...","date_published":"2023-09-07T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/introducing-frctnl-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/slow-travel","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/slow-travel","title":"Slow Travel in Paris: Discovering Substance Cafe","summary":"I just returned from two weeks of \"slow travel\" in Paris. Instead of visiting museums and attractions, \"slow travel\" consists of living my everyday life, but in a different city. My trip generally con...","date_published":"2023-03-25T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-to-replace-social-media-with-a-personal-newsletter","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/how-to-replace-social-media-with-a-personal-newsletter","title":"How to replace social media with a personal newsletter","summary":"Last week I shared how I'm building Postcard as a calmer alternative to social networks. I believe that personal newsletters will replace social networks like Twitter and Facebook as a dependable, per...","date_published":"2022-12-29T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/why-i-built-postcard-a-calmer-alternative-to-social-networks","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/why-i-built-postcard-a-calmer-alternative-to-social-networks","title":"Why I built Postcard: A calmer alternative to social networks","summary":"During the pandemic, I deleted most of my social media accounts. While social networks started as a great way to stay in touch - the websites evolved into addictive entertainment platforms. But I stil...","date_published":"2022-12-21T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/launching-postcard","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/launching-postcard","title":"Launching Postcard","summary":"Today I'm launching Postcard, the easiest way to make a personal website. In 5 minutes, you can create a page that looks great on any device - with no coding or design skills required. Host it on your...","date_published":"2022-11-10T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/launching-postcard-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/introducing-contraption-co","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/introducing-contraption-co","title":"Introducing The Contraption Company","summary":"Today I'm introducing my new business, The Contraption Company - a product studio building dependable software tools for online work.  Slow growth makes steady progress In the past, I've built VC-back...","date_published":"2022-11-04T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/introducing-contraption-co-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/when-are-low-code-prototypes-useful-evaluating-startup-market-and-implementation-risks","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/when-are-low-code-prototypes-useful-evaluating-startup-market-and-implementation-risks","title":"When are low-code prototypes useful? Evaluating startup market and implementation risks","summary":"Ask for advice on how to make a startup, and most people recommend starting with a low-code prototype.       There are categories of businesses where low-code prototypes can help you de-risk a new ide...","date_published":"2022-09-14T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/sharing-a-project-i-built-postcard","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/sharing-a-project-i-built-postcard","title":"Sharing a project I built - Postcard","summary":"Over the last two years I've quit Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.  I replaced social media with newsletters and blogs as the ways I stay in touch. Not many people have blogs - so I built a bot to le...","date_published":"2022-05-19T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/advice-for-marketplace-startups","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/advice-for-marketplace-startups","title":"Advice for marketplace startups","summary":"Marketplace businesses connect buyers and sellers, and they typically make money by taking a cut of transactions. Some of today's largest companies are marketplaces, such as Amazon, Airbnb, and Uber. ...","date_published":"2021-05-11T00:00:00.000Z","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/moonlight-s-pitch-deck","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/moonlight-s-pitch-deck","title":"Moonlight's pitch deck","summary":"In 2017, I co-founded Moonlight as a professional community for software developers with Emma Lawler. We were both leaving San Francisco, and wanted to make it easier for all developers to find specia...","date_published":"2020-10-15T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/moonlight-s-pitch-deck-cover.png","tags":["contraption"]},{"id":"https://www.philipithomas.com/buyers-define-marketplaces","url":"https://www.philipithomas.com/buyers-define-marketplaces","title":"Buyers define marketplaces","summary":"A marketplace business connects buyers and sellers in exchange for a cut of the revenue. Some of today's biggest companies, such as Amazon, Uber, and Airbnb, are marketplaces. Yes, these companies cha...","date_published":"2020-06-07T00:00:00.000Z","image":"https://www.philipithomas.com/images/covers/buyers-define-marketplaces-cover.jpg","tags":["contraption"]}]}