

Show HN: I launched my first solo side project - sdotsen

Sysadmin is my bread and butter, but I taught myself PHP and have been coding on and off for the past 6 years. I've worked on numerous freelance gigs, but mainly internal apps that I use for my real job. I worked on this project (on and off) for the past year and I'm happy to finally release it to the public.<p>Even if it doesn't succeed, I'm happy that I was able to "scratch an itch" I've had for the past couple of years. I wanted to make something and prove to myself that I can program. I'm not the greatest, but I'm proud of what I've achieved.<p>http://www.ikeepm.com
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md1515
The problem I see is this: How can anyone prove anything? Will they be
entering exact factory numbers etc? I ask because one could easily include a
bunch of very expensive laptops with stock photos / photos taken from a friend
and then get "robbed" and provide this evidence. This might be the only
trouble with attacking the insurance providers (although I could be wrong if
there is a way to insure they actually own it).

In any case I wish you the best of luck!

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sdotsen
I got feedback from a couple of folks who had the unfortunate task of going
through an insurance claim process. As long as they have receipts, they're
fine. Obviously this could pose a problem for some of your items that you
purchased years ago but he told me lots of photos that show your item inside
the house goes a long way. e.g. This won't work ... Photo of your 47" LCD in a
room that doesn't look like anything inside your home.

Generic photos won't work, I know many folks keep a video recording of their
home.

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qxb
Congratulations. I think this is a neat little service. I could certainly see
a market outside the domestic one, too. I've worked for small businesses and
public sector organisations where maintaining an inventory of office equipment
was necessary not just for insurance, but also for funding and auditing
purposes.

Best of luck.

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sdotsen
I'm debating whether I should focus more on businesses. At my current job,
we're in the middle of inventorying everything from IT to furniture. We're
using spreadsheets of all things but I can't push my product since it would be
a conflict of interest.

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qxb
Updating a spreadsheet with quantities of desk lamps and keyboards sounds
painfully familiar.

I would target businesses. Here's something to consider. With a home user, you
first have to convince the potential customer of the benefits of keeping an
inventory. Then you have to persuade them to use your service over a competing
one, or a spreadsheet, or pen and paper. Then you have to convince them to pay
you for your service, presumably, at some point in the future.

Keeping an inventory is already an established practice for businesses, so
that first home user hurdle is cleared. You just have the remaining two:
explaining why iKeepm is better than struggling with a spreadsheet (photos and
reports are two features that spring to mind for me straight away) and getting
people to pay. My hunch is that businesses, already persuaded of the need to
keep an inventory, would be more ready to pay than home users.

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sdotsen
Thanks! I need to talk to some folks in finance that handle this stuff. What
exactly do they look for, I assume the finance department are the ones who
request such a list.

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mapster
This is fine. As long as its possible to attach scans of warranties and
receipts for insurance claims. Great layout, tho one nitpic: 'Getting started
is hard' repelled me. Draw the user in with 'Getting started is easy' or some
other attraction.

"A+++ hacker. would buy from again" :)

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sdotsen
Thanks! I've modified it.

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sdotsen
Link: <http://www.ikeepm.com>

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jamespcole
Great idea, kind of like home user asset management i guess. I'll definitely
be signing up. It's looking pretty polished too.

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aymeric
Genuine question: what are the benefits for an individual to track everything
they own?

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dan-g
Insurance purposes, most likely.

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patternexon
Congratulations. It looks very polished.

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RoastBeats
While I realize it's not a "flashy" project in terms of "look how much fun you
can have with this app" or "look how it can streamline your workflow," I like
its utility. Every time I look around my condo, I can't help but think "I
really need to do a better job of recording my assets in case something
happens and I need to file a report with my insurance company. So in that
sense, anything that makes it easier for me to do that would come in handy.

But I'm not sure you give that need enough emphasis in your CTA's. I don't
really see anything on the homepage (which is where it's going to be most
important) about needing to document this stuff for my insurance company. As
far as I can tell, that's pretty much the number one reason, right? Perhaps
you could even play off the same basic cautionary desires that make us buy
insurance in the first place. For example, I know the chances of my condo
burning down are incredibly slim, but I still spends hundreds of dollars
insuring all my stuff as a "just in case." Why not play on that? Why not have
messaging that reminds people that they're doing it for the "just in case"?

You mention you've got a full time job and this is a sort of side project, but
you might also consider reaching out to some insurance companies to see if you
could get some sort of "Seal of Approval." Right now, I don't know if your
product would be an approved means of categorizing assets for my insurance
company, but if I saw State Farm's logo (and All-State, or whoever) right
there on the homepage, I, as your consumer, would get that immediate warm-
fuzzy feeling of being extra secure (even if having those logos come with all
sorts of caveats about not guaranteeing claims, necessary comprehensive
documentation, etc, etc.)

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sdotsen
Totally understand what you're saying and it's on my to-do list. I'm going to
spend the next two months on getting the message across. Thanks for your
input!

