NLNewt Likier

SYSTEMS DESIGN · IMPLEMENTATION · WORKFLOW DESIGN

I build practical machines for messy work.

I take real workflows—usually the ones that have outgrown spreadsheets, email chains, generic software, or institutional memory—and turn them into purpose-built systems.

See the machines Work with me

HOW THE CODE GETS MADE

I design the systems. I use ChatGPT to help me code them.

I am not selling myself as a hand-coding software developer. I use ChatGPT as a coding collaborator under my direction. If you hire me, you are hiring my experience in understanding the work, designing the system, directing implementation, testing it against reality, refining it, deploying it, documenting it, and teaching people how to use it.

SELECTED MACHINES

See the actual shape of the work.

For several projects, you can open a demo version of the application shell. These are not simplified “concept demos.” They preserve the navigation, density, workflow structure, and visual language of the real machine while replacing private or operational records with invented data. Nothing is saved.

01

NONPROFIT OPERATIONS

Custom Non-Profit Data Manager

Overview

A customizable nonprofit data and operations manager that brings constituent relationships, gifts, acknowledgements, grants, purchasing, finances, tasks, data health, and institutional knowledge into one connected system.

From me

I started this machine because everything was done in separate spreadsheets that didn't connect to each other, weren't intuitive to update, and were hard to visually understand. Institutional knowledge was all scattered. So, I set out to create a repository that is functional, user-friendly, and customizable to what the non-profit needs it to do. What I love is that the workflows actually connect—a purchase request can become a reconciled bank transaction; a gift can become an editable letter, print pack, and mailing record; rescue history can enrich the same constituent record without losing its own meaning.

Open Demo
02

VOLUNTEER OPERATIONS & TRAINING

Volunteer Portal

Overview

A customizable volunteer portal that combines active-volunteer resources, announcements, events, capacity information, searchable references, structured training, quizzes, scenario practice, simulated calls, feedback, qualification, call logging, trainer review, and administrative tools.

From me

This non-profit didn't have a formal process in place for certain aspects of training or sharing information to active volunteers. The result was a lot of preventable confusion, different or unclear expectations, and lost information. A lot of training knowledge needed to be codified, so experience is preserved even if someone retires. This machine was built to help keep everyone informed, trained, and confident on the clock.

Open Demo
03

RELATIONSHIP & CAMPAIGN OPERATIONS

Relationship & Campaign Manager

Overview

A shared workspace that connects contacts, projects, campaigns, expenses, acknowledgements, applications, tasks, relationship ownership, and team administration without forcing each part of the work into a separate system.

From me

I did not want relationships, campaigns, money, projects, and follow-up living in separate universes. This machine is organized around the work people are actually doing together, so a contact can be connected to a campaign, a task, a project, a donation, and the person responsible for the relationship without rebuilding that context every time.

Open Demo
04

PERSONAL OPERATING SYSTEM

ThreadKeepr

Overview

A modular personal operating system spanning daily life, planning, body and health logging, companions, media libraries, reflection, playful reward systems, and a deliberately separate professional environment called Planet Work.

From me

I built ThreadKeepr because my brain does not divide life into neat app-store categories. The part I love is the modularity: serious tracking, books, games, recurring chores, companions, reflection, and weird experiments can all live in one system without pretending they are the same kind of thing. Planet Work even gets its own visual environment so work does not colonize the rest of the app.

Open Demo
05

PRIVATE HOUSEHOLD SYSTEM

Family Routine System

Overview

An intentionally anonymous family application with distinct private spaces, shared family tools, reminders, personal routines, household care, and shared animal-care records.

From me

The problem here was not just tracking chores. Different people needed different private tools, while some things genuinely belonged to the household. I like that the system can keep a person's private routines and check-ins in My Space while family messages, reminders, and animal-care history remain appropriately shared.

Open Demo
06

COLLABORATIVE PROJECT SYSTEM

Creative Collaboration Network

Overview

A shared collaboration workspace for geographically distributed creative teams, connecting people, projects, contacts, newsletters, dates, agreements, responsibilities, and access in one place.

From me

The challenge of this project was helping physically distant people collaborate in a way that brought their ideas together and encouraged teamwork, while still maintaining ownership and individual responsibility.

Open Demo
07

HIGHLY CUSTOMIZED ROUTINE SYSTEM

Yog-Sothoth Chore Tracker

Overview

A deeply customized to-do and chore system that turns recurring obligations, grouped routines, digital habits, points, weekly goals, and rewards into a deliberately strange cosmic-horror ritual.

From me

This machine is a good example of how specific a custom system can get. It needed to be much more than a generic to-do list: the language, rewards, recurring logic, grouped rituals, little hidden interactions, and overall experience all had to fit one very particular person. I researched the source material thoroughly so I could build in small easter eggs and details that felt intentional while still meeting a set of very specific, niche needs.

Open Demo
08

GOOGLE SHEETS & APPS SCRIPT

Rescue Flock Command Center

Overview

A spreadsheet-backed animal rescue operations system that turns a multi-tab Google Sheet into a lightweight web application for flock records, daily care, medical history, intake, adoption and foster tracking, outcomes, revenue, supplies, photos, and dashboard alerts.

From me

I like this machine because the answer was not to throw away the spreadsheet. Google Sheets was already a perfectly reasonable data layer for a small operation; the problem was making that data pleasant to use. Apps Script let me put a purpose-built command center over the workbook, connect records across tabs, create searchable animal profiles and histories, keep photo folders in Drive, and give caretakers an interface that behaves like an app without forcing them into a much heavier platform.

Open Demo

MACHINE PARTS

You may not need a whole machine.

Sometimes the problem is one ugly form, one impossible spreadsheet, one approval process, or one piece of a larger system. Machine Parts are bounded pieces of custom work that can stand alone now and become part of a larger machine later.

01

Workflow mapping

Untangle how the work actually happens, identify failure points, and turn institutional memory into a usable process.

02

Forms & intake

Replace awkward forms and repeated data entry with a purpose-built intake flow that collects what you actually need.

03

Queues & approvals

Build review, approval, assignment, status, and follow-up flows so work stops disappearing into email chains.

04

Directories & references

Make contacts, policies, procedures, resources, and operational knowledge searchable and maintainable.

05

Reports & documents

Generate useful reports, letters, certificates, print packs, summaries, or other repeatable outputs from your data.

06

Dashboards & tracking

Turn scattered records into a clear view of what is happening, what is late, what changed, and what needs attention.

07

Permissions & handoffs

Give different people the right views and responsibilities without making the whole system everyone’s problem.

08

Documentation & training

Make a system survivable: instructions, admin notes, training material, and handoff support are part of the build.

Parts are upgradeable. If a small build later grows into a larger machine, I reuse what still fits. You do not have to buy the same work twice just because your needs grew.

IMAGINE YOUR MACHINE

Start with the annoyance, not the software.

You do not need to know what database, framework, screen, or feature you want. Tell me what keeps going wrong, what takes too long, what people forget, or what your current tools make unnecessarily difficult.

Good starting points

“We have six spreadsheets that almost say the same thing.”

“Only one person knows how this process works.”

“We keep buying software and using 15% of it.”

“I want this tiny, weird thing to work exactly the way my brain expects.”

PROJECT SKETCH

Show me the problem.

No technical vocabulary required. Rough answers are useful.

01 The problem

02 The context

03 The specifics

PRICING STRUCTURE

Price follows the machine, not a fake package.

I quote based on the amount of system design, customization, integration, testing, urgency, and continuing support the work actually requires. Two projects with the same number of screens can be radically different jobs.

BOUNDED WORK

Machine Part

from $100

One defined problem solved without commissioning an entire system.

  • Forms, trackers, queues, directories, reports, training tools, or similar pieces
  • Quoted by scope and complexity
  • Can remain standalone or become part of a larger machine later

LOWER CUSTOMIZATION

Skimmed Machine

from $200

Existing, proven parts assembled with limited customization.

  • Best when your workflow resembles something I have already built
  • Fewer novel rules and integrations
  • Fastest path to a working custom tool
  • Can be upgraded later without throwing away useful work

MOST CUSTOMIZATION

Custom Machine

typically $500–$2,000

A system designed around your actual workflow rather than an existing template.

  • Custom information architecture and interface
  • Novel workflow rules, integrations, or permissions
  • Iterative testing against real use
  • Documentation and handoff built into the project
Initial working hour$30

A small non-refundable deposit covers one real working hour: understanding the problem, checking feasibility, beginning the workflow map, and figuring out what kind of machine makes sense.

Ongoing work$40/hour

For agreed changes, additions, maintenance, troubleshooting, and continued development after delivery.

What changes the quote

ComplexityHow many rules, roles, edge cases, and connected workflows?
NoveltyCan I reuse proven parts, or are we inventing new machinery?
UrgencyA compressed timeline can cost more because it displaces other work.
Data & integrationsImports, APIs, migrations, external services, and messy legacy data add work.
MaintenanceHandoff-only, a defined support period, or continuing maintenance are priced differently.
Scope changesNew ideas are welcome; work outside the agreed scope gets re-estimated before I build it.
Cost concerns?

I try to keep custom software accessible. If a project is a good fit but the quoted price is a genuine barrier, tell me. I may be able to adjust the scope, split the work into stages, or work out another arrangement. Reduced pricing is considered case by case and is not guaranteed or expected.

HOW I WORK

The software starts with the workflow.

  1. 1

    Understand the real work.

    I look for handoffs, workarounds, forgotten steps, repeated questions, invisible dependencies, and information people keep having to reconstruct.

  2. 2

    Build the information architecture.

    I decide what belongs together, what should stay separate, which views each person needs, and how information moves through the system.

  3. 3

    Implement and break it on purpose.

    I direct AI-assisted coding, test the workflows, find edge cases, revise the design, and keep iterating until the machine fits the work.

  4. 4

    Make it maintainable.

    Deployment, permissions, documentation, training, and handoff are part of the system—not an afterthought.

WORK WITH ME

Bring me the messy version.

You do not need a specification. A rough description of what is broken, tedious, scattered, or overly generic is enough to start.

What you are hiring: systems analysis, workflow and interface design, implementation direction, testing, deployment, documentation, and training. Coding is AI-assisted.

Send it from here. This form sends your inquiry through Formspree to newtlikier@gmail.com. Your name, email address, and inquiry are processed by Formspree so I can receive and reply to you. You can still email me directly if you prefer.

GUARANTEE & WORKING TERMS

If I built it wrong, I fix it.

These are the plain-language principles I use when I take on custom work. A project-specific scope and agreement will control the details of an actual build.

CODE-FAULT GUARANTEE

The delivered machine should do what we agreed it would do.

If an unmodified delivered version fails because of a defect in the implementation I delivered, I will correct that defect without charging additional labor for the fix.

The guarantee does not turn new features, changed requirements, client or third-party code changes, bad data, misuse, or changes to outside services into free development work. If the cause is unclear, I will identify what changed before we decide what kind of work it is.

Scope before build

We agree on what the machine is supposed to do before the main build begins. Quotes cover that agreed scope. New requests or substantial changes may change the price, and I will tell you before I do work that would increase the cost.

$30 starting deposit

The initial working hour is covered by a $30 non-refundable deposit. It pays for actual analysis and project work even if we decide not to continue.

Third-party costs are separate

Hosting, domains, APIs, payment processors, email services, AI services, and other outside products may have their own fees and terms. I will identify expected dependencies rather than quietly burying them in the machine.

AI-assisted implementation

I design and direct the system and use AI as a coding collaborator. I test the resulting implementation against the agreed workflow. I do not represent the code as manually authored line by line.

Your data stays your responsibility

I can build imports, permissions, backups, and safeguards, but the client is responsible for having the legal right to provide and use the data placed in the system and for following any rules specific to their field.

Maintenance is explicit

A build can be handed off, supported for a defined period, or maintained on an ongoing basis. Ongoing availability is not implied forever; the maintenance arrangement is part of the scope.

Version record

I keep a reference record of the delivered version and the terms attached to that delivery so there is a concrete baseline for support, warranty questions, and future upgrades.

No forced rebuy

If you later expand a Machine Part or Skimmed Machine, reusable work carries forward. You pay for the new work, not for me to pretend the old work never happened.

Ethical boundary

I will not build systems whose purpose is racist, homophobic, transphobic, abusive, exploitative, or otherwise designed to harm people. Different values are not automatically a problem; harm is.

Plain-language summary, not boilerplate theater: exact payment schedule, deliverables, access, maintenance, cancellation, data handling, and any project-specific requirements will be written down for the individual job.

Accessibility by design

This site uses high contrast, Atkinson Hyperlegible, large controls, predictable navigation, limited color, clear spacing, and no animation or flashing effects.