what if we only need a few hours of advice?

not every problem needs a project. sometimes you need someone who's seen it before to tell you which platform to pick, or whether the quote you've been given is reasonable, or whether the thing you're about to build should exist at all. that's a small piece of work and we treat it as one.

what it looks like

you send the question and whatever you already have: links, the quote, the spreadsheet, access to the codebase if that's what it's about. bring it to the call. afterwards you get a written recommendation covering what we'd do, what we'd avoid, and roughly what it would involve. it's yours to act on with your own team, with another vendor, or with us.

typical requests:

• which platform, which host, or which subscription to cancel, from someone who isn't paid by any of them
• a read of an existing codebase: what it does, what shape it's in, what's risky
• due diligence on a company you're buying or investing in that has software in it

sometimes the answer is that a cheaper option does the job, or that you can do it yourself. we'll say so. we'd rather lose a small job than sell you one you don't need. the first conversation is free either way, and we only invoice once you've agreed a scope and a number in writing.

send the problem over and say what you're stuck on. if it's a bigger thing in disguise, we'll tell you that too.