Dustin Davis Blog

Meet Lewis and Lenny — My AI Coworkers

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

People say Claude does everything OpenClaw does. I disagree. Here's how my OpenClaw agents became the most reliable coworkers I've ever had.

How I Built an Autonomous QA Pipeline with AI Agents on a Mac Mini

Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I set up AI agents to find bugs, fix them, and deploy to production — all running autonomously on a Mac Mini at home. Here's how the pipeline works.

My Playbook for Building an App with AI

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A step-by-step checklist I follow when building a new app with AI — from design mockups to deployment to getting found on Google.

One Week with OpenClaw — A Claude Code User's Perspective

Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I was skeptical about OpenClaw. As a heavy Claude Code user, why add a middle-man? After one week, I get it now.

Laziness Is My Superpower!

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Why the right kind of laziness makes you a better developer. Strategic laziness isn't about avoiding work—it's about finding the path of least resistance to get results.

Introducing WebhookSpy: A Free Webhook Testing Tool Built with AI

Tue, 02 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

How I built WebhookSpy, a free webhook testing tool, in just a few hours using OpenAI Codex and Claude. From frustration with existing tools to a fully deployed solution.

Upscaling Images with AI Tools

Wed, 05 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000

How I used AI tools to upscale and enhance a historical image for printing an 8x10 photo for Thanksgiving decor.

Use AI to Write Your Git Commit Messages

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Discover how to leverage AI to generate informative git commit messages automatically. Learn to implement a bash script that uses OpenAI's GPT-4 to create consistent, detailed commit messages, saving time and improving your project's documentation.

My Software Easter Eggs

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A developer's tale of implementing humorous easter eggs in a professional video clipping tool, featuring Konami code and a snarky Clippy revival.

From Gatsby to 11ty

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A brief overview of moving my blog from Gatsby to 11ty, highlighting the simplicity and speed of 11ty compared to Gatsby.

UtahJS Conference 2024 Review

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Explore key insights from UtahJS Conference 2024, including React Server Components, vanilla JS web components, DevOps with GitHub Actions, AI-powered features, and real-time hypermedia. Discover cutting-edge tools and techniques shared by industry experts to enhance your JavaScript development skills.

Resizing Classic Art for the Samsung Frame TV Without the Mat

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A guide to using a custom script to resize and crop images for perfect display on a Samsung Frame TV.

Markdown to PDF Magic: Create a One-Command Converter for macOS

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Learn how to streamline your documentation workflow by building a custom script that transforms Markdown files into professionally formatted PDFs with a single command. This step-by-step guide covers everything from installing prerequisites to creating and using your own mdtopdf tool on macOS.

Automate sending images via text with Mac OS Messages

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

How I sent out images to 80 phone numbers in 12 minutes with Mac OS Messages

156 Books in 156 Weeks

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Highlights of some of my favorite books that I read in 2023

Get Latest Python Package Version

Wed, 08 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Discover how to quickly determine the latest version of any Python package using the pip command. Use my script to quickly get the text you need to paste into your requirements file.

Adding Note Margins to a PDF File

Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Learn how to effortlessly add note margins to PDF files for an enhanced note-taking experience on apps like Notability and GoodNotes.

UtahJS 2023 Conference Review

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

A review of the 2023 UtahJS conference - summaries of the talks attended including caching strategies, codemods, SvelteKit, debugging, the importance of side projects, and key takeaways.

Building a Backyard Shed

Mon, 03 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I bought a Sturdy-Built shed kit. Below are photos of the build process.

AutoSavvy / AutoSource - Save Yourself the Stress and Money

Mon, 03 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I've purchased 3 cars from AutoSource / AutoSavvy and it has been the most frustrating and most expensive car buying experience ever. Save yourself!

52 Books in 52 Weeks

Wed, 19 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

What I learned from reading/listening to 1 book per week.

Docker-Compose Overwriting Dockerfile Data

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

How to keep docker-compose volumes from overwriting container data.

Create Your Own Dynamic DNS Service

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Don't pay for an expensive service when you can code it yourself in two lines.

Batching to Reduce Downtime

Mon, 30 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Adjusting the flow of your process can make good routines better.

Updating LetsEncrypt SSL Cert Remotely

Wed, 04 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

When you can't get things to run properly on your server, do it on your dev machine!

PNG to ICNS Conversion Script and MacOS Automation

Tue, 03 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +0000

There are no special tools required to convert a PNG file to and ICNS file. Just use this simple script.

POC Use KeyCloak JWT to Authorize Hasura Queries

Fri, 30 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Proof-of-concept to use a JWT generated by KeyCloak to authorize queries in Hasura.

POC Authenticate with KeyCloak and Get JWT

Thu, 29 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

First proof-of-concept - register and authenticate user and get valid token.

User Authentication

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What led to our decision to use KeyCloak over other available options

Starting a New Side Hustle Startup

Tue, 27 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Follow me on a journey to create a new side hustle startup with some friends.

Missouri/Nauvoo Church History Tour

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

We took our 18 year old daughter on a tour of church history sites. This is my travel log.

Stop Being Late for Virtual Meetings

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tampermonkey script that completely interrupts your workflow to remind you of meetings.

Scripting MacOS Configuration

Wed, 28 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tips for scripting your mac setup.

More Robust Virtual Note Taking

Wed, 14 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Using Notability or Goodnotes to enhance your study and note-taking on a digital device.

Disney World 2021

Wed, 03 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000

My experience and recommendations for the Happiest Place on Earth

Starting Front-End and Back-End Scripts at the Same Time

Thu, 15 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

When you need to start a backend and transpile your front-end code for development purposes, here is a handy script to do both at the same time.

How to Convert an eBook to an Audiobook

Thu, 08 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Use text-to-speech and FFmpeg to generate an audiobook from an eBook on MacOS.

Goodbye LastPass, Hello Bitwarden

Wed, 07 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

LastPass is a great tool, but I've found a solution I like more.

JAMstacks - Gatsby & 11ty

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

After spending a month migrating two WordPress sites to Gatsby and 11ty, here are a few of my thoughts.

Wildcard Let's Encrypt SSL Cert on Synology NAS

Mon, 21 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

How to set up a wildcard cert and auto-renew on Synology NAS

How to Create a Debt Snowball Spreadsheet

Fri, 11 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Watch my 16 minute tutorial on how to create a "living" debt snowball tracker

Goodbye WordPress

Wed, 02 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

I've moved my blog from WordPress to Gatsby. Here's the WHY and HOW.

Google Meet - On Air Light Automation

Wed, 26 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Learn how to automate your desk lamp to turn on during virtual meetings, enhancing your work-from-home setup and improving communication with family members. This step-by-step guide covers the process and benefits of creating an 'On Air' light for Google Meet and other video conferencing platforms

Rebecca Roll'd

Sat, 08 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

You've been Rick Roll'd, but have you been Rebecca Roll'd?

Tools We Use to Keep Our Kids Safe with Technology

Thu, 06 Aug 2020 23:08:26 +0000

We utilize every tool we can think of to keep our kids safe - both physically and mentally - when it comes to using cell phones, internet, television, and other technology.

Running Portainer on Synology

Thu, 23 Jul 2020 20:39:35 +0000

Portainer offers more features and control over docker containers. Here are two simple steps to get it up and running on your Synology NAS

Audible to Plex

Thu, 09 Jul 2020 23:14:51 +0000

How and why I migrated all my Audible audiobooks to my Plex server and how I consume them.

Keep Webmin Running

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 20:15:13 +0000

A simple bash script to check if services are running and start them if not.

Convert Audio Clip to Ringtone - Mac Automation

Wed, 11 Sep 2019 20:21:34 +0000

How turn MP3 files into ringtones with a simple right-click command on MacOS

Weight Loss Advice from a Dietician/Nutritionist

Mon, 19 Aug 2019 23:22:32 +0000

Some notes and learnings from visiting with a nutritionist

Building Your Own Website on a Budget in 2017

Wed, 26 Jul 2017 14:43:37 +0000

The tools I would use to build a personal website in 2017

Real-World Examples of Aurelia's Compose Tag

Wed, 19 Apr 2017 21:19:20 +0000

Let me show you a few examples of how we use the tag

Aurelia - Sharing Data Between Components

Fri, 14 Apr 2017 20:49:31 +0000

Using dependency injection to share data between components.

Observing Arrays in Aurelia

Thu, 06 Apr 2017 19:02:30 +0000

If you're struggling to observe array data changes in Aurelia, check out these code snippets.

Aurelia Replaceable Parts & HTML Only Templates

Fri, 31 Mar 2017 15:30:46 +0000

When you need dynamic content in a slot, you really need a replaceable part.

Internet Pause Button with DD-WRT

Thu, 12 Jan 2017 17:01:11 +0000

How to set up DD-WRT on a Nighthawk router to allow you to pause your home wifi from your phone.

Daily Passwords for Kids' Computer

Wed, 14 Sep 2016 21:03:45 +0000

How I change the logins everyday on the computer to make sure they get their jobs done before zoning out on the computer.

Aurelia Accordion Component From Scratch

Wed, 10 Feb 2016 23:31:56 +0000

How to build a simple accordion component in Aurelia

Why Aurelia over Angular, React, Ember or Meteor

Wed, 16 Dec 2015 00:43:29 +0000

After looking at the path of migrating from AngularJS to Angular 2, I'm changing lanes.

Right Click Folder & Create ISO in OSX

Tue, 06 Oct 2015 20:55:50 +0000

How to set up a right-click menu option to create an ISO file from a folder.

Using Gmail for Support

Fri, 10 Apr 2015 14:41:25 +0000

How and why I prefer to simply use Gmail for customer support.

Top 8 ng-shirts

Fri, 06 Mar 2015 18:36:25 +0000

My favorite shirts from ng-conf (AngularJS) ranked.

ng-conf Advanced Workshop Review

Thu, 05 Mar 2015 18:00:00 +0000

Summary of my experience with ng-conf workshops

How to Create Lego Logo Inspired Text in Illustrator

Wed, 04 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Quick and simple tutorial for creating Lego type fonts.

Setting up a Signed SSL Certificate on Nginx

Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:23:40 +0000

How to add an SSL to a website running on nginx

Essentialism Book Review

Wed, 14 Jan 2015 13:01:36 +0000

My review of the highly-touted book, Essentialism

2014 Year In Review

Wed, 31 Dec 2014 12:15:17 +0000

A look back at all things 2014, and goals for 2015

Quick Recurring Payments with Stripe & Checkout

Thu, 25 Sep 2014 22:25:58 +0000

How to quickly set up a recurring payment page with PHP and Stripe

Setting up OpenSprinkler

Thu, 28 Aug 2014 17:37:32 +0000

How I set up OpenSprinkler

Productivity Tools & Processes

Sat, 23 Aug 2014 05:14:17 +0000

Some new productivity ideas and tools I want to try

Django Pluralize Outside of Templates

Thu, 12 Jun 2014 17:33:01 +0000

How to use the pluralize filter directly in python

Sync Personal Docs on Kindle for Mac

Wed, 16 Apr 2014 16:21:14 +0000

How to get your personal documents into Kindle

MemcachedKeyLengthError: Key length is > 250

Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:19:29 +0000

Fixing a recurring problem with Django's built-in cache page decorator

Refactoring to Save 4805 Lines of Code

Wed, 31 Jul 2013 17:29:14 +0000

Using Python magic to save a lot of lines of code.

Python Twisted IRC Bot: Lazy Coder

Tue, 30 Jul 2013 17:33:16 +0000

IRC Bot that responds to the word "why" with lazy coder responses

SSH Tunnel in pgAdmin3 for PostgreSQL

Tue, 23 Jul 2013 20:08:59 +0000

How to create an SSH tunnel to pgAdmin for PostgreSQL for a graphical experience on a remote server

Django MONTH_CHOICES

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 16:10:17 +0000

Short tip on getting month choices from django.contrib

Setting up a Django Server with PostgreSQL, Nginx, Celery & RabbitMQ

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:51:57 +0000

Step-by-step guide to setting up a Django server with all the works.

Python, Django & the Google Adsense API

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 19:08:39 +0000

How to talk to the Google Adsense API with Django/Python

Django Textile/Markdown Template Caching Speedup

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 07:29:19 +0000

Speeding up a Django site by transforming text during database saves.

Setting Up Your Own Sentry Server

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 16:19:33 +0000

Short tutorial on how to set up your own self-hosted Sentry server.

DigitalOcean, Heroku, Linode & Webfaction: Hosting Showdown

Thu, 17 Jan 2013 22:23:05 +0000

I tried out four different web hosts to determine where I want to host my next site.

The Tools I Use

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 22:08:24 +0000

Some of my favorite apps and websites

Django Custom Upload Handler to Compress Image Files

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 06:51:30 +0000

How to compress images when they are saved in a Django application.

What Every High School Student Should Know About Computing

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 22:48:42 +0000

What I would teach beginning computer students

How I Cured My RSI & Back Pain

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 18:58:34 +0000

I considered changing careers because of years of wrist pain. Now I'm pain-free after learning about the mindbody connection.

Replacing Myself

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 17:35:52 +0000

My plan to hire someone to help with my business

Phurlite: Simple PHP SQLite URL Shortener

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 22:29:31 +0000

A simple URL shortener contained in one PHP file and .htaccess file for Apache with support for Tweetbot

How to Reset a Django Admin Password

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 18:11:05 +0000

The most efficient way to change your admin password on a Django site.

Herniated L5-S1 Disc

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:18:21 +0000

How I herniated a disc in my back and what I am doing to cope and recover.

Setting Up a ZNC IRC Bouncer

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 17:22:37 +0000

How to stay logged in to IRC and connect on different machines

Audio Books!

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:07:07 +0000

Let me share my love of audiobooks!

My Django Dev Environment: Virtualenv, pip, git, & PyCharm

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:00:11 +0000

How I use virtualenv and pip to manager my python dependencies per project

How Sports Improves Programmer Focus

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 20:14:15 +0000

I played a lot of sports as a teenager and it has helped me focus as a programmer.

Django Color Theme for PyCharm

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 14:13:02 +0000

Django green theme for PyCharm

Python IRC Bot Using Twisted (Rollbot)

Thu, 28 Apr 2011 22:38:14 +0000

A simple IRC bot that will show the page titles of links posted

Top 10 Productivity Tips

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 19:47:45 +0000

Everyone has their productivity hacks. Let me share mine with you.

The Problem with Buying Templates

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 21:13:38 +0000

Scan your html carefully when you buy a template.

Django smart_unicode

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 22:59:33 +0000

Use Django's `smart_unicode` function to solve unicode errors

jQuery UI Dialog: OK click on Enter key

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 18:19:43 +0000

Simple jQuery snippet to close a dialog box on enter

SVN to Git

Mon, 07 Mar 2011 23:01:42 +0000

How to migrate a subversion repo to Git

Budgeting a Trip to Disneyland

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 17:50:11 +0000

How to plan a trip to Disneyland on a budget (circa 2011)

PHP, Python & Django

Wed, 26 Jan 2011 20:41:29 +0000

Why I'm moving from PHP to Django (instead of Ruby on Rails)

77 Things I Did in 2010

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 17:54:32 +0000

2010 was a busy and memorable year for me.

Implementing a Forgot Password Feature on a Django Site

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 11:24:11 +0000

Everyone forgets their password, help customers get it back.

Mobile App on Subdomain with Django

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 17:07:48 +0000

Using an alternate settings file for a mobile version of my site.

Django: ProgrammingError: Can't Adapt

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:16:48 +0000

An error I got often while learning Python and the simple fix.

Copy Model Object in Django

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:41:27 +0000

How to copy a database record in Django

Why The Cash Envelope System Didn't Work for Us

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:01:29 +0000

The cash envelope system is not for everyone

Django cron on Webfaction

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:18:06 +0000

How to adjust the python path to run Django scripts in cron

Use Google Earth to Track Your Mileage

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:59:49 +0000

How to use Google Earth to track distance

Django: Filter Model on Date Range

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:44:45 +0000

A generic filter function to filter query results by data ranges

Django & Djson… er, JSON

Thu, 21 May 2009 21:04:23 +0000

Converting a DB object to JSON format

Webfaction Review

Fri, 15 May 2009 15:29:24 +0000

Why I love Webfaction so much as a Django developer

Simple PHP Pluralize

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:12:10 +0000

A simple function for pluralizing strings in PHP

Django: Login Form on Every Page

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:16:00 +0000

How to include a login form on every page of a Django app

Django: Filtering a ModelForm field

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:40:42 +0000

How to filter a ModelForm by foreign key in Django

Download POP3/IMAP Email Attachments with PHP

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 16:51:31 +0000

How to download email attachments via PHP

Webfaction Limited Review

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:48:18 +0000

A quick review of Webfaction hosting

Django Tip: get_FIELD_display()

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 22:45:44 +0000

Magic template functions in Django

Dynamic Filtered Drop-Down Choice Fields With Django

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 17:05:18 +0000

How to filter the options of a component.

Django Accounts on Subdomains

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 18:33:13 +0000

How to create a Django app where each user account gets their own subdomain

Django Model Style Guide

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 18:58:06 +0000

The preferred order of Model classes and methods

Remember TRBL

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 17:34:08 +0000

The TROUBLE remembering the order of things in CSS

Update Windows Path Without Rebooting

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 11:38:06 +0000

Updating the PATH environment variable without rebooting in Windows

Rails Creator Praises PHP

Fri, 23 May 2008 19:06:27 +0000

Ruby on Rails creator, DHH gives a little praise to PHP

Restoring MySQL InnoDB Files on Windows

Tue, 16 Oct 2007 19:49:59 +0000

How I escaped disaster by restoring a MySQL database

Paint.net Trim Function

Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:15:17 +0000

How to trim an image like you would in Photoshop

The Naartjie

Fri, 22 Dec 2006 18:07:12 +0000

What is a naartjie and where did it come from?

Fun With Hot Linking

Thu, 14 Dec 2006 16:47:49 +0000

How to swap out images if other sites are using them on their site.

Gmail Addresses Ignore Dots

Tue, 17 Oct 2006 15:03:18 +0000

Gmail ignores periods in your email address. This can be good and bad.

Bedbugs & Beetles, or Skeeters?...

Wed, 13 Sep 2006 11:37:54 +0000

Old song from 2nd grade that sits in my head...

HTML Files Parsed Through PHP

Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:49:31 +0000

How to pass .html files through the PHP parser with Apache

Thank You Andy!

Tue, 05 Jul 2005 19:12:56 +0000

The miracle product that removed the ballpoint pen ink from our new sofa

PHP Templating

Thu, 12 May 2005 14:42:41 +0000

Templating can be very simple with PHP, no other frameworks needed for basic templates.

Welcome me!

Tue, 18 Jan 2005 18:09:08 +0000

My first blog post ever. Jan 18, 2005