How it was built
A backup checklist, built by chatting.
Same story as the Focus Timer: no coding background, just plain English and a bit of curiosity. Here are the sorts of things I asked for.
Step 1 · The routine in my head, on a screen
I've run roughly the same backup routine after every wedding for years. The whole idea was just to get it out of my head and into something I could tick through, calmly, every time.
Build me a simple, calm backup checklist for photographers. I pick a routine, tick off each step, and see a progress bar. It should remember my place on my device, no login.
Made a browser-based checklist with a progress bar that saves your ticks to local storage. Pick a routine, work down the list, and it remembers where you're up to next time.
Step 2 · One checklist, not four
My first go had separate routines for every setup. It felt fussy. The honest truth is the steps are nearly the same for everyone, so I collapsed it into one clear run with snappy buttons, and a Skip for anything that doesn't apply to you.
Make it one universal checklist instead of four. Snappy one or two-word buttons (Prep, Count, Offload, Second copy, Cloud...) each with a short descriptor. Tap to turn green, or skip. If someone skips the second copy or the cloud, show a gentle warning to review their backup routine.
Rebuilt it as a single nine-step checklist with tap-to-green buttons and a Skip on each. Skipping a critical step (second copy or cloud) now shows a warm amber nudge to review your routine. Progress is still kept on your device.
Step 3 · Drawing the Pro line
Same ethos as the timer. The free tool is genuinely useful on its own; the things that make it truly yours are what Pro is for.
Keep the free version as the example checklists. In the app, add a gentle Pro teaser: saving your own routine per couple, syncing with an email login, and flagging gaps in a setup (like three drives all in one house and no cloud).
Kept the free checklist fully working, and added a tasteful Pro teaser plus a 'where it could go' section covering per-couple jobs, sync, and a setup-gap check that spots risks and even cheaper providers.
The build log
And it keeps evolving.
Every change since launch, newest first. Tap any entry to read the thinking behind it.
LatestIt counts, and checks, for youCount now tallies your files across cards, and Triple check verifies your main drive, backup drive and cloud all match that total.
Backup Buddy is meant to be used live, while you're actually backing up, so it got more interactive. In the Count step you tap in each card's image count (add a card for each one) and it keeps the running total. The old 'Cloud check' became 'Triple check': it shows that total and asks you to confirm your main drive, your backup drive and the cloud all match it, one tick each. Numbers stay on your device.
UpdateOne checklist, with skips and warningsSimplified from four routines into a single clear run: snappy buttons, a Skip on each, and a nudge if you skip a copy or the cloud.
The four-routine picker felt fussy, since the steps are almost the same for everyone. Now it's one nine-step checklist (Prep, Count, Offload, Check totals, Second copy, Cloud, Cloud check, Final sweep, Mark complete). Each is a tap-to-green button with a plain descriptor and a Skip. Skip a second copy or the cloud and it gently flags it, because a single copy is one accident away from gone.
LaunchThe first betaA calm, reusable backup checklist for photographers, with ready-made example routines. Free, no account, kept on your device.
Backup Buddy started as the checklist I run after every wedding, so a lost or corrupt card is never the thing that keeps me up at night. The free beta ships with four example routines (two-drive, NAS + cloud, cloud-first and off-site), each with a step-by-step list, image-count checks and a gentle progress bar. Your ticks are remembered on your device.
Fancy building your own?
If you've ever wished a tool existed, you're closer to making it than you think.