Applications

Every application begins as a single question: what is the one thing this needs to do? We write that down before anything else, and we use it to reject features later. A tool that does one thing completely is more useful than one that does several things adequately, and it is considerably easier to keep working for years.

Before writing an application, we decide three things and record them: what data it needs, whether it can work offline, and what it will cost. These are not implementation details to be settled later — they determine what the application is. An application that needs an account is a different product from one that does not, and we would rather know that on the first day than the last.

• A support page. Not a contact form that goes nowhere. A page on this site, specific to that application, with an address that reaches a person.

• A privacy page. Written for that application, listing what it collects, why, and which third-party services it uses. Not a generic policy reused across a catalogue.

• A stated platform. We publish for iOS, Android, or both, and we say which on the application's page. We do not list an application as available on a platform where it is not.

An application is not finished when it ships. Operating systems change, APIs are deprecated, and devices get replaced. We budget for that work rather than treating it as an interruption.

If we ever stop maintaining an application, we will say so on its page and explain what that means for people already using it. Silence is the normal way software dies, and it is the one thing we will not do.