Dev log

Appcat

Every logged day on Appcat, newest first. The product is at appcat.io.

StartedJanuary 2026
StatusTaking clients
Days logged13
Last logged4 Mar 2026

Mobile pass and red theme

I did a mobile pass on the marketing pages and admin tables, with a fluid-width layout and consistent spacing. The logo was replaced and a red theme applied. Support email addresses were replaced with community links, and free campaign references were removed.

Shipped

  • Mobile layout fixes across the site
  • Fluid-width layout
  • Red theme
  • New logo
  • Community links instead of support emails
  • Free campaign references removed
  • Admin tables usable on phones

I rewrote the homepage and About page copy, including an AppCat Method section and a new FAQ. Templates can now be marked coming soon. Collections have a display order and can be unpublished. The footer lost its email link, and Google and Apple sign-in were removed.

Shipped

  • AppCat Method section on the About page
  • New FAQ
  • Coming soon status for templates
  • Collection display order
  • Collections can be unpublished
  • Footer email link removed
  • Google and Apple sign-in removed

Blog launched

I added a blog with an admin editor. Posts are written in markdown, use images from the media library, and show an author profile, tags and related posts. Each category has its own archive page.

Shipped

  • Blog
  • Admin post editor
  • Markdown posts
  • Author profiles
  • Tags and categories
  • Category archive pages
  • Related posts

I can now feature templates, add cover images to collections, and manage every image from a new Media Library with a shared picker. Template edits gained a Versions tab. Buyers get their templates through a Circle course instead of a public remix link, and the free templates page carries a Circle sign-up form. Discord links now point to the community.

Shipped

  • Featured templates
  • Collection cover images
  • Media Library
  • Versions tab on template edit
  • Delivery through a Circle course
  • Circle sign-up form on the free page
  • Community links

Rebuilt as a Lovable template marketplace

I rebuilt AppCat as a marketplace for Lovable templates, replacing the client-services site. Visitors can browse templates, open a detail page for each one, explore collections and pick up free templates, with a thank-you page after checkout. Paid templates are sold through Lemon Squeezy. I carried the admin area over to manage templates and collections and added a changelog.

Shipped

  • Templates browse and detail pages
  • Collections
  • Free templates page
  • Checkout through Lemon Squeezy
  • Thank-you page
  • Admin for templates and collections
  • Changelog

I refreshed the brand assets, logo and link preview image. Clients can now sign in with Google or Apple. I rewrote the hero around the client portal, reworked the services and track-record copy, and dropped the 24-hour promise. The FAQ was expanded with pricing and workspace collaboration answers and sorted into categories, and the leads pages and portal were tuned for phones and tablets.

Shipped

  • Refreshed brand assets
  • Google and Apple sign-in
  • Hero and services copy rewrite
  • 24-hour promise removed
  • Categorized FAQ with pricing answers
  • Leads pages and portal on phones and tablets
  • Redesigned email templates admin

Fixed-price sprints replace subscriptions

I moved pricing from subscriptions to fixed-price sprints two days after adding the subscription dashboard. The pricing page and the sprint views in the portal were updated to match. Each client now gets their own Trello board instead of one shared link. I added a How It Works timeline and refreshed the marketing copy.

Shipped

  • Fixed-price sprint pricing
  • Subscription checkout removed
  • A Trello board per client
  • How It Works timeline
  • Refreshed marketing copy

Portal simplified

I removed chat one week after adding it and simplified the portal to a set of project links, including a link to the project's Trello board. The admin and client project pages were redesigned. I moved the portal toward a subscription model with a subscription dashboard and cut onboarding to eight steps. Prospects now book their own consultation, and I can preview the portal as a client sees it.

Shipped

  • Chat removed
  • Portal reduced to project links
  • Trello board link on projects
  • Redesigned project pages
  • Subscription dashboard
  • Onboarding cut to eight steps
  • Self-booked consultations
  • Admin preview of the client view

I added in-app chat so clients and I can message inside the portal. The pricing page was redesigned and gained a Micro Sprint tier and a timeline that shows how work is shared along the way. Add-ons were removed from pricing. Admin pages now work on phones with icon-only tabs, new leads have a Schedule Call button, and Terms and Privacy live on one tabbed page.

Shipped

  • In-app chat between clients and admin
  • Micro Sprint pricing tier
  • Show-work timeline on the pricing page
  • Add-ons removed from pricing
  • Admin pages usable on phones
  • Schedule Call button on new leads
  • Terms and Privacy on one page

Client portal with onboarding, payments and email

I replaced the contact form with a multi-step onboarding form that collects project details and lets prospects book a call. New leads get a welcome email, and I get a notification. In the client portal, clients can pay phase invoices by card through Stripe and receive invoice and payment confirmation emails. On the admin side I added a project wizard, a lead wizard that checks for duplicates, and a preview of every email, and I simplified billing to two invoices per project.

Shipped

  • Multi-step onboarding form with call booking
  • Welcome email for new leads
  • Card payment on invoices through Stripe
  • Invoice and payment confirmation emails
  • Admin project and lead wizards
  • Email preview in admin
  • Two invoices per project

New look and dark mode

I reworked the site navigation and moved the palette from violet to orange across the site, the sign-in screens, the portal and the admin area. I added dark mode with a toggle in the header, and it follows the system setting by default. Clients can pick their own theme in the portal. I cleaned up the Services, About, Case Studies and Contact pages and put a dashboard mockup in the hero.

Shipped

  • Reworked navigation
  • Orange palette
  • Dark mode toggle in the header
  • Theme follows the system setting
  • Portal theme picker
  • Cleaned up Services, About, Case Studies and Contact pages
  • Dashboard mockup in the hero

AppCat started

I started AppCat on Lovable as a client-services site. Visitors could sign in with Google and send a contact form. I added an admin area to track leads and projects, turn a lead into a project, and manage project milestones. I also set the first logo and link preview image.

Shipped

  • Client-services site
  • Google sign-in
  • Contact form
  • Admin area for leads and projects
  • Lead to project conversion
  • Project milestones
  • First logo and link preview image