Brett Terpstra
Brett is a writer and developer living in Minnesota, USA. You can follow him as ttscoff on Twitter, GitHub, and Mastodon. Sign up for the email newsletter, and keep up with this blog by adding it to your favorite news reader.
I’m excited to offer the next giveaway, 10 1-year subscriptions ($57 value each) for Flexibits Premium from Flexibits. Flexibits makes some incredibly useful apps. Fantastical is an awesome Calendar replacement, Scheduling makes organizing calls and meetings a breeze, and Cardhop is the perfect way to manage and access your contacts. The Flexibits Premium subscription gets you access to all three, on all your devices.
From the developer:
A single subscription unlocks all premium features in Fantastical and Cardhop across all your devices. Your calendars, tasks, and contacts will be more powerful, more productive, and more fun.
Check out the Flexibits site for more info.
Sign up below to enter. Winners will be randomly drawn on Friday, March 22, at 12pm Central. The drawing is for 10 1-year subscriptions ($57 value each) for Flexibits Premium, one per winner. Note that if you’re reading this via RSS, you’ll need to visit this post on brettterpstra.com to enter!
New rule: All signups must have a first and last name in order to be eligible. Entries with only a first name will be skipped by the giveaway robot. A lot of the vendors in this series require first and last names for generating license codes, and your cooperation is appreciated!
Stay tuned for more giveaways every week through September, 2024 (and maybe beyond).
If you have an app you’d love to see featured in this series of giveaways, let me know. Also be sure to sign up for the mailing list or follow me on Mastodon so you can be (among) the first to know about these!
I wanted short urls for Dimspirations, and I wanted a custom domain name (dim.moi), but didn’t want to pay the somewhat exorbitant prices to do so with something like Bit.ly. So I set out to build my own URL shortener.
PHP/mySQL seemed like the path of least resistance on my current server setup, so I went looking for existing tools that met my needs without too much complication. I found Shorty by Mike Cao, a decade-old project that still worked just fine. I forked it and built a tool called Shortly on top of it. It uses all of the base code of Shorty with my own additions, so full credit for this goes to Mike, but it has enough changes specific to my needs that I’m not pushing my fork upstream.
Shortly is a basic URL shortener. You just have to register your short domain, set up basic PHP/mySQL hosting for it, and then install the files. So the total cost is one domain registration, plus whatever hosting you use for it. It requires very few resources, so a simple $5 shared hosting plan will work fine. I have multiple servers where adding new domains doesn’t cost me anything, so I went with a Dreamhost server for this and built it for just the cost of a .moi
TLD ($30/yr, if I recall correctly).
The install instructions are detailed in the README and on the project page. It’s pretty simple, just creating a mySQL database and importing an SQL file to set up the simple database. In about 15 minutes you can have a custom URL shortener that outputs urls like dim.moi/eQ and passes them through to the full url on the target site. All of my Dimspirations now have short urls, and I can generate new ones with a simple curl
call from my build system.
Here’s what I added to the script:
format=qr
and size=XXX
to create QR codes for shortened urlscurl
callsAll of these settings are detailed in the README and commented in the config file.
For my particular needs, my shortener will only shorten URLs from dimspire.me
, will forward unknown urls like dim.moi/ether-bunny
to https://dimspire.me/dimspiration/ether-bunny/
, and will append some UTM parameters to any url it shortens so I can track usage.
Part of the impetus for this was I wanted to include UTM parameters in the links I offered for sharing, but didn’t want to make ungainly URLs. With Shortly, I can add any query parameters I like to a url and end up with a simple https://dim.moi/fR
url to share. And I can shorten https://dimspire.me/dimspiration/optimal-anxiety-level/
to https://dim.moi/optimal-anxiety-level/
without even using the API (as the unrecognized slug automatically gets forwarded to the base url dimspire.me/dimspiration/SLUG
).
Hopefully this inspires some fun projects of your own, and revives a great little project that Mike Cao started. It’s such a simple concept that I’m sure there are dozens, if not hundreds, of permutations of it. This is just the one I found the easiest to hack away at and get running with minimal fuss. Check out the project page or the GitHub repo to get started.
As an aside that’s not worth it’s own post, I also set up a CloudFront instance that forwards
from.ttscoff.me/(filename)
from an S3 bucket, and added a Dropzone destination so I can just drag any file to Dropzone and get back afrom.ttscoff.me
URL with which I can share any file. It lacks all of the niceties of other file-sharing tools, but I’m running it for less than a dollar a month. Subdomain was free, and it doesn’t use enough bandwidth to really register as an expense in my Amazon plan. If you want any details on how to do this, just let me know.
The Bike giveaway has ended, and I have winners to announce!
Congratulations to:
You should have received an email with details, please let me know if you didn’t hear anything!
If you didn’t win, sorry, but Bike is still worth checking out. You can still save 20% with the coupon code BRETT
at checkout. Get the simple yet powerful outliner today!
Next up is Flexibits Premium. Check back every Monday through September, 2024 for more giveaways. The next giveaways include:
See the full list of upcoming giveaways!
If you want to suggest an app you’d like to see in this series, let me know on Twitter or Mastodon, and join the email list for notifications!
I’m excited to offer the next giveaway, 3 licenses ($29.99 value each) for Bike. Bike is a deceptively simple outliner. It uses plain text files (HTML, but also supports OPML and text) to store structured data that maintain simplicity while offering a ton of functionality. Add row types like headings, ordered lists, task lists, and more. Create deep-links into your outline (works great with Hookmark).
From the developer:
Bike’s nimble. Use it as the main app for a big project or as a supporting app for notes and ideas. Standard file formats, shortcuts support, and scripting allow Bike to integrate with your existing workflows.
Check out the Bike site for more info.
Sign up below to enter. Winners will be randomly drawn on Friday, March 15, at 12pm Central. The drawing is for 3 licenses ($29.99 value each) for Bike, one per winner. Note that if you’re reading this via RSS, you’ll need to visit this post on brettterpstra.com to enter!
New rule: All signups must have a first and last name in order to be eligible. Entries with only a first name will be skipped by the giveaway robot. A lot of the vendors in this series require first and last names for generating license codes, and your cooperation is appreciated!
Sorry, this giveaway has ended.
Stay tuned for more giveaways every week through September, 2024 (and maybe beyond).
If you have an app you’d love to see featured in this series of giveaways, let me know. Also be sure to sign up for the mailing list or follow me on Mastodon so you can be (among) the first to know about these!
The Things for Mac and iOS giveaway has ended, and I have winners to announce!
Congratulations to:
You should have received an email with details, please let me know if you didn’t hear anything!
If you didn’t win, sorry, but Things for Mac and iOS is still worth checking out. Things will help you get organized, and get your stuff done.
Next up is Bike. Check back every Monday through September, 2024 for more giveaways. The next giveaways include:
See the full list of upcoming giveaways!
If you want to suggest an app you’d like to see in this series, let me know on Twitter or Mastodon, and join the email list for notifications!
I’m excited to offer the next giveaway, 5 (sets of) licenses for Mac, iPhone, and iPad ($80 combined values) for Things. Things is a task management solution that I love for its elegance. Display your todos alongside calendar events, see exactly what you have to do today, see upcoming tasks, and break large projects down into manageable pieces.
From the developer:
Things makes it easy. Within the hour, you’ll have everything off your mind and neatly organized – from routine tasks to your biggest life goals – and you can start focusing on what matters today.
Check out the Things site for more info.
Sign up below to enter. Winners will be randomly drawn on Friday, March 08, at 12pm Central. The drawing is for 5 licenses for Mac and iOS ($80 value each). for Things for Mac and iOS, one per winner. Note that if you’re reading this via RSS, you’ll need to visit this post on brettterpstra.com to enter!
New rule: All signups must have a first and last name in order to be eligible. Entries with only a first name will be skipped by the giveaway robot. A lot of the vendors in this series require first and last names for generating license codes, and your cooperation is appreciated!
Sorry, this giveaway has ended.
Stay tuned for more giveaways every week through September, 2024 (and maybe beyond).
If you have an app you’d love to see featured in this series of giveaways, let me know. Also be sure to sign up for the mailing list or follow me on Mastodon so you can be (among) the first to know about these!
I’ve created the initial round of merchandise for the Dimspirations Store. I know my sense of humor isn’t for everyone, which is why this whole project is on a different site.
I’ve started with some of my personal favorites as tees, mugs, and a 2024 calendar. The collection will grow over time (it’s print-on-demand, no cost to me to expand the selection). I’ll also adjust pricing based on feedback. I think the prices are pretty competitive based on what I’ve spent on merch myself.
I’m using Sellfy for the printing and delivery. I’ve used Spring in the past and checked out Printful and Cotton Bureau, but Sellfy seemed like the best solution with the most competitive pricing. I already paid for a 1-year package, so let’s hope it works out. If it does, I’ll probably relaunch the BrettTerpstra.com (Lab) merchandise there as well.
Please do check out the store, and if you like what you see, toss a couple bucks my way. And if you don’t see what you want, be sure to upvote your favorites Dimspirations by clicking the devil below each one. If you have special requests, of course let me know.
I’ll admit, this one is my favorite:
The Black Ink giveaway has ended, and I have a winner to announce!
Congratulations to:
You should have received an email with details, please let me know if you didn’t hear anything!
If you didn’t win, sorry, but Black Ink is still worth checking out. You can save 20% on your purchase with the coupon IndieTerpstra
. Visit the Red Sweater store to grab your copy!
Next up is Things for Mac and iOS. Check back every Monday through September, 2024 for more giveaways. The next giveaways include:
See the full list of upcoming giveaways!
If you want to suggest an app you’d like to see in this series, let me know on Twitter or Mastodon, and join the email list for notifications!
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Thanks to Sanebox for sponsoring BrettTerpstra.com again this week! This one is longer than the usual sponsored post, but full of great tips whether you use SaneBox or not (but you should!).
Effective communication is key in the workplace. With it, we can complete tasks on time and meet sales goals. Yet, essential messages can sometimes get lost in our busy inboxes.
This is where reminder emails come into play—they serve as gentle nudges to keep tasks on track without being overly intrusive. Crafting a reminder email that is polite, clear, and actionable requires finesse. Luckily, these best practices and examples can help you write an effective reminder email that helps you achieve your goals without sounding rude.
Start your reminder email with a courteous greeting to set a positive tone. Whether you’re addressing a colleague, client, or team member, a friendly salutation can go a long way in fostering goodwill.
Example
Subject: Friendly Reminder: Upcoming Team Meeting
Dear [Recipient’s Name],I hope this email finds you well. I wanted to gently remind you about our upcoming team meeting scheduled for [date and time]. Your presence and input are highly valued, so we look forward to you joining us.
Clearly state the purpose of your email and provide relevant context to jog the recipient’s memory. Be concise yet comprehensive, ensuring that the recipient understands why the reminder is necessary and what action is expected from them.
Example
As our project deadline is approaching, it’s crucial that we finalize the presentation slides by [deadline date]. Your expertise in [specific area] will be invaluable in ensuring the success of this project. Please review the attached draft and provide your feedback at your earliest convenience.
Specify the task or event that requires attention, including any pertinent details such as deadlines, locations, or action items. Avoid vague language that could lead to confusion or misunderstanding.
Example
Please submit the quarterly sales report by [deadline date]. This report is essential for our planning and decision-making processes. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you require any assistance or additional information.
Clearly outline the steps the recipient needs to take and any deadlines associated with those actions. A call to action provides clarity and encourages prompt response or action.
Example
To confirm your attendance, please RSVP by clicking on the following link: [RSVP link]. If you cannot attend, kindly let us know so we can make the necessary arrangements.
If you are concerned your call to action may not be strong enough or elicit a timely response, you can always use the SaneReminders feature from SaneBox to help you follow up later on. Think of it like a timer: you specify the information with an @sanebox.com email in the To or CC line, and SaneBox takes care of the rest.
Express gratitude for the recipient’s cooperation and assistance. Acknowledging their efforts reinforces positive behavior and encourages continued collaboration.
Example
Thank you for your attention to this matter and for your continued dedication to our team’s success. Your contributions are truly valued and appreciated.
End your email with a polite closing that leaves a positive impression. A courteous farewell demonstrates professionalism and respect for the recipient’s time.
Example
Once again, thank you for your cooperation. We look forward to your prompt response. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Writing an effective reminder email requires a balance of politeness, clarity, and specificity. However, your workplace can avoid lost messages and overloaded inboxes altogether by utilizing a mailbox management app like SaneBox.
SaneBox is an incredible inbox management tool that can save you hours per week thanks to seamlessly organizing and filtering emails. Once you set up SaneBox, the email management tool will classify incoming messages into folders based on their importance. This way, you can quickly view essential messages that require a response and leave the rest for later.
Effective communication is the cornerstone of productivity and success in any endeavor. Don’t be the reason someone needs to send you reminder emails: gain control over your email with SaneBox. Check out SaneBox today and save $25!