11 ms·

Show HN: MyHours – Time tracking for digital nomads

48 points by johngorse 10y ago

papaver 10y ago
i don't understand all these time tracking apps to the seconds/minutes. as a consultant/freelancer don't you value your time and skills more than on the minute at the desk working? how do you incorporate thinking about problems when your taking a shower or sleeping or the many other times you are not at your computer or desk without a timer and thinking. i find these can be some of the most valuable times there are for solving tough problems. ever since i started charging day rates, life has been so much easier. i set a minimum of 1/2 a day increments. 10x easier to manage, and it stops the client from looking at you as a cost center that they are loosing hourly on. it also stops the micromanagement of your time. estimating work is hard enough, tagging hourly on stuff makes it even harder. a day then can be as many hours are you like it to be. weather you end up working 12 hours or 4 is up to you and how well you get the work done. if the client is willing the pay the day rate for the problems you are fixing, the hourly time you spend no longer matters.
geostyx 10y ago
Why is https not on by default?
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
hangulo 10y ago
You can also check out https://www.toptal.com/tracker https://www.toptal.com/tracker , its 100% free and has both desktop client (for almost any OS) and web client.
xeromal 10y ago
Looks perfect for my side gigs. 3 dollars / month for Premium ain't a bad price point either. It'd be nice to see a better demo or screenshots. The one currently overlaid on the computer screens look a little rough. :P
- johngorse 10y ago
  Hi, tnx for your comment. We're redesigning our landing page currently, so there will be nicer pictures on it too.
potomak 10y ago
If you want to stay focused and track your time I built Tomatoes[0]. It's a pomodoro technique timer and a time tracker. It's web based, it's completely free and open source[1]. I built it when I started freelancing and I was in need of both a tool that would have helped me to be productive and to track time that I spent on clients projects. [0] http://tomato.es http://tomato.es [1] http://github.com/potomak/tomatoes http://github.com/potomak/tomatoes
superquest 10y ago
I've spent the last couple days trying to find a way to time Asana tasks ... I never want to leave the Asana UI to do time tracking, I want to be able track stuff from multiple organizations / workspaces / projects, I want to be able to make estimates, and I want to see progress towards my estimate wherever relevant. Have tried Hubstaff, Everhour, Harvest, Timecamp, Timeneye, Toggle. They all suck and cost 5x what this costs ... Can anybody suggest another? I'm ready to give up and tiny Chrome extension ... but that's a lot of work!
- dbg31415 10y ago
  Harvest and Asana play nice together. Are use Harvest to track my time in Asana. I know you said you tried it, but... it works great for me. The Chrome extension for Harvest works with just about everything. https://asana.com/apps/harvest https://asana.com/apps/harvest
  - barnum 10y ago
    Interesting thanks. It's a shame that Asana doesn't allow one to estimate time for tasks. It would be useful for fixed-price projects, to both make initial project quotes, and later see how you're doing against your estimates. I had a look at Paydirt which shows time spent vs estimated for tasks and projects, but it's not as nicely integrated with a task board like Asana. You can import Trello projects but it's a one-way import, not that integrated. A well integrated app for project board / estimates / time tracking / invoicing would be fantastic.
  - superquest 10y ago
    Good to know. Thanks. Harvest is just suuuuchhhh overkill for what I need -- timer & estimate buttons that writes to a custom property on Asana task objects. And after mapping my projects over to Harvest I encountered a bug that broke the whole thing. Opened a ticket ...
    - dbg31415 10y ago
      Harvest has a bunch of import tools, it also has some CSV import tools that can make setup easier. You don't have to use burn down features if you don't want.
ezekg 10y ago
You should force SSL. Following the header links causes the page to reload over https.
- johngorse 10y ago
  Hi will do, tnx for reminder.
  - ezekg 10y ago
    No problem. Good job on your launch! Product looks nice.
andmarios 10y ago
Looks very nice. I signed up to evaluate it better since I am using Kapow now. I think it is a bit too complex though for the simple case scenarios. I had to set projects and clients and tasks and billing and billable hours and so on. I had to visit so many pages just to set up for a test of one client and one project and in the end I couldn't create an invoice with a price on it. Whilst the project/client/task/person working/billing per hour tuple provides a very nice model, I think in real life it won't be used as much so no need to enforce it.
- johngorse 10y ago
  Hi, tnx for your comment and opinion. You don't know how much I appreciate that kind of evaluation. I will discuss with my colleagues about this.
passivepinetree 10y ago
Probably off-topic, but it seems as though every new site advertising a software tool has a top-down picture of a desk with a Macbook on it, a notepad, and some other office supplies scattered around. I'm not complaining; it's a nice image, but there's definitely a trend going on.
- Stratoscope 10y ago
  More than just a trend, a lot of these came from the same photo shoot. https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/top-view-office-desk-paper-stationery-tablet-computer.html https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/top-view-office-des...
- sndean 10y ago
  Even Google Drive: https://www.google.com/drive/ https://www.google.com/drive/
- smnplk 10y ago
  It's a hipster thing. Macbook: Check Wooden table: check Vintage wayfarer glasses: check, Iphone: check, Notepads in different colors: check, Coffe or tea: check, Some totally unrelated drawing or technical plan: check, Fancy pencils or pens: check, A vintage lamp: check
  - wingerlang 10y ago
    Off topic. But you just described my current work situation fairly accurately, the main items hit. Macbook, iPhone, wooden table and tea. Replace the drawings with some bills, notes with an iPad and the "vintage" lamp with a normal lamp. I have to say it is a very comfortable setup, especially in the early hours.
    - smnplk 10y ago
      I am glad that it works for you.
overcast 10y ago
Celebrating 15th anniversary??? This might be the oldest running "Show HN" yet.
- johngorse 10y ago
  We redesigned it, but indeed it might be among the first time tracking web applications out there. It was never shown on HN before.
corobo 10y ago
Am I the only person that hates "Start or stop timer with a single click"? I don't want timers. I never remember to start them, I never remember to stop them. What I do instead is write down in my little (edit: physical, pen and paper) notepad when I start a task then note when I stop it, later updating the timesheet with the difference. I just want to be able to enter a hours:minutes value for each task when I get a moment, does this app do that? It's literally the only reason I still use Basecamp Classic (v1) Another pet peeve: If I click "Features" in the header or footer I want more information, I do not want to be scrolled back to the thing I already read.
- overcast 10y ago
  It's always been one of those features that sounds good in your head, but never works in practice, except when you're playing chess. They NEVER get used, and if by chance they do, they are so wildly inaccurate, because you've forgotten about it in the meantime.
- patrick_haply 10y ago
  What's the difference between remembering to click a button and remembering to write something down?
  - corobo 10y ago
    Quickly jotting a time on a piece of paper doesn't seem to drop be out of the zone/flow/etc whereas switching to some time app does. I always have the notepad and pen next to the mouse ready to go to write notes about what I'm doing anyway, may as well just timestamp the task changes. Also the notepad is always there in physical space, I haven't accidentally closed the tab it was in and it's never hidden behind a terminal window. Not really sure, I think it's having a different input method as opposed to the mouse and keyboard I'm using to do whatever task I'm doing so it doesn't get in the way.
- welder 10y ago
  Try https://wakatime.com https://wakatime.com which I built to solve this exact problem... it automatically tracks your time, no more manual timers!
runemadsen 10y ago
I have been using toggl.com for months now, and it's really amazing. Apps for all major platforms, good reporting interface, and manual/timer tracking.
- matart 10y ago
  I loved toggl but I ended up needing more features than just tracking time for $10/month.
matart 10y ago
I am a big user of Harvest and this looks very similar. That is not a bad thing but I have a few issues with this. 1) When I signed up I filled out some information. I thought it was my first project but I don't remember now. This information has disappeared. I had to enter in new tasks, project, etc. 2) The tracking screen is too complex, I get that it does a lot but it is overwhelming. I will compare to harvest which asks very simple questions (Project, task, duration (if left blank it starts a timer)) Also is there a chrome/firefox app? This is crucial as a timetracking application should not take up significant time to use.
- johngorse 10y ago
  Hi, thanks for signing up, you can switch on simple time tracking if you go to Profile page in Manage menu. Also did you create projects and tasks in a wizard when you first sign up?
RichardHeart 10y ago
http://www.manictime.com/ http://www.manictime.com/ is free, automatic and awesome
- hyperc 10y ago
  Must have for programmers and people who spend entire day in office. It is not timer based, but still tracks you with seconds accuracy. We use paid version as a team on server which unlocks new features.
thomasdd 10y ago
Personally I write all my time to CalDav server for about 3 years now. Works great on all kinds of devices. Then I have a small python utility that can read the calendar file and parse time for selected words. For example I create event "DEVELOPMENT PROJECT_XY". Then python script calculates time for "PROJECT_XY"... Maybe I should publish that as open-source after some code review. Also I can review how much time I spend on personal stuff like house cleaning, cooking, shopping, or research and study...

48 points by johngorse 10y ago

i don't understand all these time tracking apps to the seconds/minutes. as a consultant/freelancer don't you value your time and skills more than on the minute at the desk working? how do you incorporate thinking about problems when your taking a shower or sleeping or the many other times you are not at your computer or desk without a timer and thinking. i find these can be some of the most valuable times there are for solving tough problems. ever since i started charging day rates, life has been so much easier. i set a minimum of 1/2 a day increments. 10x easier to manage, and it stops the client from looking at you as a cost center that they are loosing hourly on. it also stops the micromanagement of your time. estimating work is hard enough, tagging hourly on stuff makes it even harder. a day then can be as many hours are you like it to be. weather you end up working 12 hours or 4 is up to you and how well you get the work done. if the client is willing the pay the day rate for the problems you are fixing, the hourly time you spend no longer matters.

geostyx 10y ago

Why is https not on by default?

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

hangulo 10y ago

You can also check out https://www.toptal.com/tracker https://www.toptal.com/tracker , its 100% free and has both desktop client (for almost any OS) and web client.

xeromal 10y ago

Looks perfect for my side gigs. 3 dollars / month for Premium ain't a bad price point either. It'd be nice to see a better demo or screenshots. The one currently overlaid on the computer screens look a little rough. :P

johngorse 10y ago
Hi, tnx for your comment. We're redesigning our landing page currently, so there will be nicer pictures on it too.

potomak 10y ago

If you want to stay focused and track your time I built Tomatoes[0]. It's a pomodoro technique timer and a time tracker. It's web based, it's completely free and open source[1]. I built it when I started freelancing and I was in need of both a tool that would have helped me to be productive and to track time that I spent on clients projects. [0] http://tomato.es http://tomato.es [1] http://github.com/potomak/tomatoes http://github.com/potomak/tomatoes

superquest 10y ago

I've spent the last couple days trying to find a way to time Asana tasks ... I never want to leave the Asana UI to do time tracking, I want to be able track stuff from multiple organizations / workspaces / projects, I want to be able to make estimates, and I want to see progress towards my estimate wherever relevant. Have tried Hubstaff, Everhour, Harvest, Timecamp, Timeneye, Toggle. They all suck and cost 5x what this costs ... Can anybody suggest another? I'm ready to give up and tiny Chrome extension ... but that's a lot of work!

dbg31415 10y ago
Harvest and Asana play nice together. Are use Harvest to track my time in Asana. I know you said you tried it, but... it works great for me. The Chrome extension for Harvest works with just about everything. https://asana.com/apps/harvest https://asana.com/apps/harvest
- barnum 10y ago
  Interesting thanks. It's a shame that Asana doesn't allow one to estimate time for tasks. It would be useful for fixed-price projects, to both make initial project quotes, and later see how you're doing against your estimates. I had a look at Paydirt which shows time spent vs estimated for tasks and projects, but it's not as nicely integrated with a task board like Asana. You can import Trello projects but it's a one-way import, not that integrated. A well integrated app for project board / estimates / time tracking / invoicing would be fantastic.
- superquest 10y ago
  Good to know. Thanks. Harvest is just suuuuchhhh overkill for what I need -- timer & estimate buttons that writes to a custom property on Asana task objects. And after mapping my projects over to Harvest I encountered a bug that broke the whole thing. Opened a ticket ...
  - dbg31415 10y ago
    Harvest has a bunch of import tools, it also has some CSV import tools that can make setup easier. You don't have to use burn down features if you don't want.

ezekg 10y ago

You should force SSL. Following the header links causes the page to reload over https.

johngorse 10y ago
Hi will do, tnx for reminder.
- ezekg 10y ago
  No problem. Good job on your launch! Product looks nice.

andmarios 10y ago

Looks very nice. I signed up to evaluate it better since I am using Kapow now. I think it is a bit too complex though for the simple case scenarios. I had to set projects and clients and tasks and billing and billable hours and so on. I had to visit so many pages just to set up for a test of one client and one project and in the end I couldn't create an invoice with a price on it. Whilst the project/client/task/person working/billing per hour tuple provides a very nice model, I think in real life it won't be used as much so no need to enforce it.

johngorse 10y ago
Hi, tnx for your comment and opinion. You don't know how much I appreciate that kind of evaluation. I will discuss with my colleagues about this.

passivepinetree 10y ago

Probably off-topic, but it seems as though every new site advertising a software tool has a top-down picture of a desk with a Macbook on it, a notepad, and some other office supplies scattered around. I'm not complaining; it's a nice image, but there's definitely a trend going on.

Stratoscope 10y ago
More than just a trend, a lot of these came from the same photo shoot. https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/top-view-office-desk-paper-stationery-tablet-computer.html https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/top-view-office-des...
sndean 10y ago
Even Google Drive: https://www.google.com/drive/ https://www.google.com/drive/
smnplk 10y ago
It's a hipster thing. Macbook: Check Wooden table: check Vintage wayfarer glasses: check, Iphone: check, Notepads in different colors: check, Coffe or tea: check, Some totally unrelated drawing or technical plan: check, Fancy pencils or pens: check, A vintage lamp: check
- wingerlang 10y ago
  Off topic. But you just described my current work situation fairly accurately, the main items hit. Macbook, iPhone, wooden table and tea. Replace the drawings with some bills, notes with an iPad and the "vintage" lamp with a normal lamp. I have to say it is a very comfortable setup, especially in the early hours.
  - smnplk 10y ago
    I am glad that it works for you.

overcast 10y ago

Celebrating 15th anniversary??? This might be the oldest running "Show HN" yet.

johngorse 10y ago
We redesigned it, but indeed it might be among the first time tracking web applications out there. It was never shown on HN before.

corobo 10y ago

Am I the only person that hates "Start or stop timer with a single click"? I don't want timers. I never remember to start them, I never remember to stop them. What I do instead is write down in my little (edit: physical, pen and paper) notepad when I start a task then note when I stop it, later updating the timesheet with the difference. I just want to be able to enter a hours:minutes value for each task when I get a moment, does this app do that? It's literally the only reason I still use Basecamp Classic (v1) Another pet peeve: If I click "Features" in the header or footer I want more information, I do not want to be scrolled back to the thing I already read.

overcast 10y ago
It's always been one of those features that sounds good in your head, but never works in practice, except when you're playing chess. They NEVER get used, and if by chance they do, they are so wildly inaccurate, because you've forgotten about it in the meantime.
patrick_haply 10y ago
What's the difference between remembering to click a button and remembering to write something down?
- corobo 10y ago
  Quickly jotting a time on a piece of paper doesn't seem to drop be out of the zone/flow/etc whereas switching to some time app does. I always have the notepad and pen next to the mouse ready to go to write notes about what I'm doing anyway, may as well just timestamp the task changes. Also the notepad is always there in physical space, I haven't accidentally closed the tab it was in and it's never hidden behind a terminal window. Not really sure, I think it's having a different input method as opposed to the mouse and keyboard I'm using to do whatever task I'm doing so it doesn't get in the way.
welder 10y ago
Try https://wakatime.com https://wakatime.com which I built to solve this exact problem... it automatically tracks your time, no more manual timers!

runemadsen 10y ago

I have been using toggl.com for months now, and it's really amazing. Apps for all major platforms, good reporting interface, and manual/timer tracking.

matart 10y ago
I loved toggl but I ended up needing more features than just tracking time for $10/month.

matart 10y ago

I am a big user of Harvest and this looks very similar. That is not a bad thing but I have a few issues with this. 1) When I signed up I filled out some information. I thought it was my first project but I don't remember now. This information has disappeared. I had to enter in new tasks, project, etc. 2) The tracking screen is too complex, I get that it does a lot but it is overwhelming. I will compare to harvest which asks very simple questions (Project, task, duration (if left blank it starts a timer)) Also is there a chrome/firefox app? This is crucial as a timetracking application should not take up significant time to use.

johngorse 10y ago
Hi, thanks for signing up, you can switch on simple time tracking if you go to Profile page in Manage menu. Also did you create projects and tasks in a wizard when you first sign up?

RichardHeart 10y ago

http://www.manictime.com/ http://www.manictime.com/ is free, automatic and awesome

hyperc 10y ago
Must have for programmers and people who spend entire day in office. It is not timer based, but still tracks you with seconds accuracy. We use paid version as a team on server which unlocks new features.

thomasdd 10y ago

Personally I write all my time to CalDav server for about 3 years now. Works great on all kinds of devices. Then I have a small python utility that can read the calendar file and parse time for selected words. For example I create event "DEVELOPMENT PROJECT_XY". Then python script calculates time for "PROJECT_XY"... Maybe I should publish that as open-source after some code review. Also I can review how much time I spend on personal stuff like house cleaning, cooking, shopping, or research and study...