A physical, open source time puncher for freelancers

http://www.nycresistor.com/2012/02/08/raphs-puncher-freelance-time-tracking-device/

by ericskiff • 14 years ago

42 19 14 years ago

Raphael Abrams shows us his Freelance “Puncher” time tracking device. After trying many different methods for keeping track of his hours, Raph created this little puncher to easily clock in and out of his freelance work.

Check out the code and schematics here: https://github.com/raphaelabrams/freelance-puncher

Gianteye• 14 years ago

I was just jonesing for just such a device. I'm in the same bind and would love to play with a similar design but with a dial to log different jobs.

Excellent job.

codezero• 14 years ago

This gives me a simpler idea -- use a USB drive and run a script that detects it, writes timestamp to it as it is plugged in -- say intermittently every 10 minutes. The log can either be written to the USB drive or to a local file.

mgkimsal• 14 years ago

no more autorun.inf detection processes are there? :(

jasonkostempski4• 14 years ago

I had the same idea when I opened the article but then I thought about wearing out the USB port, maybe that's a goofy concern.

nknight2• 14 years ago

Officially, the required lifetime for a USB type A connector is a disturbingly-low 1500 insertion cycles. I expect present-day connectors to greatly outlast this in practice, of course.

jasonkostempski4• 14 years ago

Bonus idea, could it be made to also start up RescueTime or similar software?

Palomides• 14 years ago

heh, my even simpler idea: use the capslock key (replacing the normal function, presumably); not used for anything else, standard on every computer, almost always has a visual indicator, probably very easy to script around.

ericskiff• 14 years ago

Ooh, that's a great twist! If you're working on the computer, that's an excellent hack.

tzs• 14 years ago

Back in the days when my employer did a lot of billable work for clients, I used music to track my time. I'd decide which client's project I wanted to work on, pop in a CD, and when the CD ended I'd write down the total time, take a little break to stretch or get a drink or visit the bathroom, and then pick the next thing I wanted to work on and the next CD I wanted to listen to.

This gave me convenient time tracking and reminded me to get up and take breaks.

lukifer• 14 years ago

This is a great idea.

jasonkostempski4• 14 years ago

I have a feeling this could cause some trouble in places like airports.

sopooneo• 14 years ago

A stop watch?

ale55andro• 14 years ago

Reminds me of the pomodoro technique whereby a real physical kitchen timer is recommended to keep track of time broken down in 25minute intervals.

andersh• 14 years ago

It also reminded me of various devices related to recording/illustrating the passage of time.

chx2• 14 years ago

My brain is not a stopwatch http://drupal4hu.com/node/319

squidnuts• 14 years ago

I used to do per project fees exclusively but I found that with certain jobs, mainly ones that involve a lot of drawn out unpredictable grind (like repairing broken circuit boards), hourly is much better for me. Different situations call for different solutions. I still charge per project for jobs that don't lend themselves to being measured with clocks. Oh, and just FYI: not all freelancers are programmers! In fact, some people do work that doesn't involve computers at all. True story.

chx2• 14 years ago

And my post was not exactly geared to programmers either. Aside from the half sentence which says "when I am actually typing the solution into an editor" there is nothing programmer specific.

A physical, open source time puncher for freelancers

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