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Costs to Expect API

The Costs to Expect API is ready for release*.

I’m going to continue development to add additional features and start working on the summary endpoints and endpoints required for the companion website, however, the API itself could be released today.

The API is ready, five years and two months of child costs exist, the two need to be put together.

I’m going to work with my Wife to review and categorise the data. Our data is categorised, however, for the API we want to break the data down a little more, our data is split into thirteen categories, we intend to have fewer base categories and subcategories to provide the detail.

*I’m not setting a release date, it will be soon though, I want to get the API out before I look for a new contract and go back to work.

Once the API is out, I will start development on the companion website for data input (preview for iOS app), the iOS app and the website to display the data.

We have several long-term plans for the Costs to Expect API and website, one being to allow additional data, for example, localised costs for childcare/hobbies etc. Our intention is you will be able to augment our base data to get a more accurate idea.

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Summer off, what does off really mean?

As a contract developer, I’m lucky enough to have I have the luxury of choosing when not to work, I’ve just finished a six-month contract and rather than find a new contract immediately I am taking the summer off to work on my projects.

I have many personal projects, the big one that dates back years and then lots of small projects, one of which has become far more popular than I ever expected and is keeping me busy.

What does a summer off mean?

Outside of social and family commitments, it means I have a bit more time to focus on my projects. I always manage to find time to work on my projects, being a night owl, but it is nice to have the extra time, makes it easier to solve the more significant problems that you can’t entirely get your head around when you only have a couple of hours at the end of a long day.

In no particular order, I am going to support and improve my open source projects, learn Swift, write a simple app to interface with a RESTful API, develop the API and if I get time, work on my long-term project and do some charting and graphing work for a new website.

The above is a tall order for six to eight weeks; we will see in September/October how far I got.