Let's talk about the beauty of diversity and choice, especially as it pertains to software and design. Choice is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when you think about software, because we all have that short- (or long-) list of apps that we use on the regular.

It's part of being human, once we find a rhythm we like, we're unlikely to want to change it again any time soon. The same truth applies across all the realms of human creative expression. Yet, choice and diversity are more than preferences and aesthetics — they're a crucial foundation for accessibility.

And hey, let's be honest: everyone has that one thing that scratches that one itch. Nothing else will do.

Insight: Somebody, somewhere, needs what only you can do

Recently, I've been dipping my toes into software reviews again, something I haven't done in quite some time. It's a niche that I particularly enjoy because my brain is excited by the prospect of new discoveries, and finding new ways to solve familiar problems or do familiar things. This applies whether we're talking about design (and tangentially related fields like digital and physical art, painting, craft, coding, web design, etc.), or we're talking about a more limited scope of the software itself.

Same ecosystem, different roles

I've observed that we often develop strategies and solutions that are similar enough to seem redundant, yet serve their own purpose and fill their own niches without cannibalizing each other. I’ve also been thinking a lot about how this all ties into accessibility, but that's a bigger conversation than I can fit here, so I’ll be returning to that aspect at some point in the future.

It's an observation I've also made in looking at the natural world. If you think about it, cats and dogs are essentially very similar groups of creatures doing very similar things within their ecosystems. Yet cats and dogs have their own place in the world and I'm sure if you ask both cat and dog people, the world would absolutely not be able to spin without either one of them in those respective roles.

You could easily say the same thing when it comes to software. There are some folks who swear they can't get professional work done without particular apps in their arsenal. Personally, I often push back on this, because what people often mean is closer to "XYZ is different from what I’m used to, and right now I’m not willing or able to spend the effort it would take to adopt it into my workflow." It’s a mouthful, but closer to the truth.

Yet, even I have to admit that there is some truth to what such folks are saying. The same way that we differ as individuals in that we all like different foods, styles of music (or no music at all), fashion, etc, we have the same approach to design and software alike. For instance, look at what's happened in the world of CSS. There was a time when if you used (or wrote) a CSS utility library, and not a framework like Bootstrap, you'd be laughed out of the room. Now, both the framework and the utility library are core concepts of standard industry practice, with Tailwind having taken the web by storm.

Don’t bury your “one thing”

On a personal note, I remember feeling a little salty (it's okay, you can laugh) when Tailwind first started to gain popularity, because I'd written my own, quite robust, utility library during the days when it wasn't popular to do so, and got my fair share of flack for it. I share this personal insight because I've since learned some valuable lessons from that experience. At the time, I gave up on my own project and let it languish, because after all (at the time) it seemed "Nobody really bothers to learn CSS! Just use a framework!"

Now? If I could speak to my former self, I'd tell him to keep at it, because one day, he'd be known in the community for making CSS fun and reaching many thousands with the CSS gospel. Furthermore, I'd let him know to keep at it because there's always somebody waiting on that one thing to show up. Case in point, I eventually did write my own CSS framework, Anole, which hasn't even reached 1.0 status, and yet was adopted as the UI framework for a real project while I was still developing it! At the time, I didn't think anyone would've taken interest, far less adopted it for a real-world project.

This just goes to show that if you build it, there's a chance that somebody's going to use or need it some day. You may never even know, but don't let that stop you from stepping out and going for it.

Practical Tip: Give life to your side projects

Baby steps — that's the key. That's the secret sauce.

If you've been around this planet for a while, you've probably heard (and possibly rolled your eyes) at the saying "Rome wasn't built in a day", because after all, it sounds a bit cliche. But hey, it's true. Your side project may not be the next "Rome" but that's okay, it doesn't need to be.

Like I mentioned earlier, I didn't think anyone would've really taken interest in my CSS framework, and yet, someone out there found it useful before I even managed to reach a point I considered "completion". I'd only been working on it in my spare time, and had even lapsed multiple times due to other priorities.

I say all of this to say, if you've got that little idea you've been sitting on, letting it languish, give it a shot. It doesn't need to take up all of your time to be successful. But if you never give it a chance, you'll never know what you can achieve.

Here’s what I’ve published recently:

It’s FOSS

• Move Between the Distros: Back Up and Restore Your Snap Packages A useful tutorial showing you how to keep your favourite applications (installed with the Snap packaging system) even if you move between machines (with a handy bit of automation to make things even easier). → https://itsfoss.com/snap-app-back-up-restore/#fast-comments-jt=w02EXPl8BX9
• Backup and Restore Your Flatpak Apps & Settings Between Distro Switch and Reinstalls Need to copy your Flatpaks to another system? This tutorial will guide you all the way (and yes, I threw in a little automation, because of course I did). → https://itsfoss.com/back-up-restore-flatpak-apps/

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