Countle

Why did I build the time zone bot?

Some people have asked me why did I build the time zone bot. Time zones are really damn hard. It's really not about the basic math that is the problem, but the hundreds of different time zones and taking into account daylight savings, also knowing what your own timezone is, what time zones other people use. How many of you know what is the offest between PDT and CEST? Bet not too many...

To make people's lives easier

I personally always had a hard time with time zones. In Reddit most people are from the US, but it's still an international forum. I never had any idea about PST's and EST's I always had to open Google and search for conversion websites. Mostly those worked alright, but it was still a hassle and wasted time. After doing that for years I got an idea about time zone bot. It was after a post someone posted. This time there was no listed time but the event start time was listed like "Starts when this post is 3 hours old". That was a genius idea and kickstarted the building of the time zone bot. Only after receiving hundreds of messages about how useful and great the time zone bot was, I knew that I had helped people, which was the goal.

Bots fascinate me

Bots have always fascinated me. It's amazing to build something that runs nearly or totally automatically. The feeling when you first get the bot running and it does the thing you wanted it to do is great. But when the bot runs automatically and you only have to watch it in awe, is something so amazing. The time zone bot wasn't the first bot I have build, but it has been the most popular and the best received.

To become a better software developer

Building and creating is the best way to learn how to build software. When you build a software that people use daily and some even depend on, it's important that it works. Building software that works and is helpful is even better way to practice, it requires a certain mindset and intense focusing. Also focusing on user experience and the interface is something that you could neglect on hobby apps.

To sum it up, I felt that time zone bot was something that would help the community. It helped me so it was logical that someone else had the same problem. It was an interesting experience to build something that is public and has to work. It was also teaching experience, after which I can say that I'm a bit better software developer.

You can find more blog posts like this one from my Blog If you would like to discuss this topic further or want to contact me, you can do so here: info@countle.com