Staudenmeyer

Plocs 2.11 released

We’ve released Plocs 2.11. You can now drag and drops tasks vertically to reorder the tasks within one day.

In Plocs 2.12 we are planning to add drag and drop support for postponing tasks to another day.

Plocs 2.10.1 released

We’ve released Plocs 2.10.1 on iOS, Android, Windows and macOS. 2.10.1 has the following new features and bugfixes:

Option to choose your own task color in the account settings
Option to choose which type of reminders you want to receive (all, due tasks, planned tasks, or none). Unfortunately, though, there is still a bug that notifications don’t always work.
Buttons to create a predecessor or successor in the task edit dialog
New icons for subtasks, predecessor and successor buttons
Better instructions when creating an additional connection between tasks.
Bugfix: Email completion and default browser password handling when logging in or registering
Bugfix: Double click to create a task only in the task list
Bugfix: Show placeholder text for Title, Description, and Comment
Bugfix: App used to crash when uploading a camera image on iOS

Please let us know if you notice any issues or have feedback regarding the new changes.

Plocs 2.6 released

We have released Plocs 2.6 with the following new features:

Support for Dark Mode
Vibration when completing tasks
Option to change the date format in account settings
Italian localization

Plocs 2.5 released

Plocs 2.5 has finally been released. It contains the following improvements:

Faster animations
Improved layout of the task edit dialog, including a save button
Better onboarding for new users
Many bugfixes

We are also currently finishing version 2.6 with:

Support for dark mode
Optional sound / vibration when completing a task
Custom date format setting

In January 2023 we are going release:

Support for Android tablets and iPad
Support for horizontal orientation on smartphones
Native applications for Windows, Mac, and Linux
Outlook and Gmail plugins
Additional usability improvements

Let us know what else you would like to see in Plocs!

What we are building for Plocs version 2.5

For the next version we are focusing on improving the onboarding process for new users and improving some aspects of general usability.

Onboarding improvements:

Improved registration and login page
Better welcome text for new users
Example tasks for new users
Optional: Interactive tutorial

Usability improvements:

Animations: Faster or no animations when adding, deleting and completing tasks
Edit dialog: Save button instead of close button and separate cancel button
Edit dialog: Simplified layout of task fields
Edit dialog: Remove comment button to avoid confusion with save button

What other changes would you like to see in Plocs?

Leave a comment or write us an email with your feedback.

How we got into the best startup accelerator in Vorarlberg

Vorarlberg? Never heard of it?

Neither had I before I moved here.

Vorarlberg is a state in Austria with a population of 400.000. It is located between Lake Constance and the Alps.

And you might have guessed it, there really is just one startup accelerator in Vorarlberg. But it is a pretty great one!

Back to the most important thing: How did we get in?

After a call with Julia, who runs the accelerator, we had to fill out an application.

Here are our answers (translated from German to English):

Team

Christian Staudenmeyer, Jia Staudenmeyer, Res Giger

Industry

Software

Facts about business model (short description, who are customers, how is profit made, how is scalability + growth possible)

Our customers are personal and business users that need software organizing tasks and projects.

Our software will be chargeable for corporate customers.

Growth will happen mostly thanks to online marketing and word of mouth.

Our collaboration features help create network effects since customers are motivated to invite other potential users to our software.

Current state of the business

We have recently released a Beta version of the app.

Milestones reached

1. Created an innovative and unique UI concept for the visualization of tasks and dependencies

2. Implemented the UI in a web app

3. Released Android and iOS apps

4. Localization of our app in German, English and Chinese

5. First beta users are using the app in production

Project description (Description of your startup, what do you do, what is the product, how is it scalable)

We develop „Plocs“, an innovative task management app for private users and corporate customers.

Plocs supports intuitive modeling and visualization of hierarchical structures and dependencies between tasks.

This makes the administration and processing of projects comfortable and efficient.

Plocs also allows you to invite friends, acquaintances and colleagues and share tasks or projects with them. Authorized users can then edit tasks, create new ones or write comments. Other users are informed of changes or new comments via smartphone notifications.

Plocs is a pure software product and therefore very scalable. Additional users only require additional server resources. The global market for project management software has a total volume of approximately $6 billion per year.

Next steps

1. Improving the app based on feedback from our users

2. Extensive marketing campaign to attract more users

Full Time / Part Time

About 80%, probably 50% at Postgarage

Motivation for Postgarage

Exchange with other startups, e.g. on the subject of financing, employee recruitment and marketing.

Sustainability (Do you have a sustainable or social focus in your project? If yes how?)

The software is free for personal use.

Filling out the application just takes an afternoon and it’s all that is required to apply.

After two weeks we got an email that we are in!

Postgarage is run by the local Chamber of Commerce and does not invest in the startups they choose, but provides a free co-working space for a batch of about 10 startups each year.

So for the next 12 months, I get to work alongside the founders of some of the greatest startups of Vorarlberg!

Plocs on the front page of Hacker News

This week, Plocs was on the front page of Hacker News!

Hacker News is the #1 news site for software developers and IT people.

I posted a „Show HN“ thread on Thursday afternoon, expecting something like 10 website visits.

When I checked our website traffic an hour later I saw a spike… The thread had already been upvoted, had several comments and people were trying our demo.

We received almost 3000 website visits, more than 100 people signed up (3.5%) and we received 20 comments on Hacker News with very detailed feedback.

We even had several applications to our C# / TypeScript developer position!

Hacker News is a truly incredible and constructive audience if you are building something that appeals to a technical audience. Thanks HN!