Pete Stewart

Building Achene in public 🛠️ An affordable, simple online course platform with custom domains & native global localisation. Early access waitlist:👇

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

@PashaBorsai I'm building https://t.co/kmNYVeQ01v in public. You can see where we're up to on our roadmap https://t.co/1HAOrcI6fb

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Over the moon to announce that the Nant Gwrtheyrn Nature Trail App (built by Tinkr Creative in partnership with Nant Gwrtheyrn) has won TWO awards at the Digital Technology Leaders Awards 2026!

Winner: Digital Project of the Year
Winner: Digital Resilience Initiative of the Year

Huge congratulations to the team at Nant Gwrtheyrn for this fantastic collaboration. It’s been an absolute pleasure turning their vision into a beautiful, user-friendly app that helps visitors explore the stunning Llŷn Peninsula while learning about Welsh heritage, language, and nature.This recognition in the awards’ landmark 10th anniversary year means a lot. Proud to have created something that blends technology, culture, and the great outdoors so effectively.If you’re in North Wales, download the app and walk the trails — it brings the experience to life with audio guides and rich content. Available on iOS and Android.Big thanks to everyone involved, and here’s to more impactful projects ahead!

#DigitalAwards #AppDevelopment #WelshHeritage #NatureTech #TinkrCreative

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

@Pragmatic_Eng @KentBeck Just to add to that. That's the current state, at least. I wouldn't rule out AI being able to emulate what an experienced engineer does at some point, but I feel that's a way off.

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Such an interesting topic, and I feel in many ways @KentBeck is spot on. Software Engineering is way more than writing code, in fact that is a very small part of it. I often say I'm language agnostic, as the code itself doesn't really matter, it's the concept that makes an engineer!

AI is in many ways like a keyboard or speech to text tools. It's just another way for code to be written, but it still needs an experienced engineer guilding it and outlining the core concepts and structure, and working through those thoughts as the project is evolving.

[The Pragmatic Engineer @Pragmatic_Eng]

Anyone who thinks software engineering is ‘going away’ doesn’t understand the job. @KentBeck, creator of XP and TDD, on why Dario has it wrong:

[Gergely: Dario said, I quote, ‘coding is going away first, then all of software engineering’. ]

“That's a statement by someone who doesn't understand software engineering. Coding is part of what you're doing, but it's only a small part of what you're doing, even if it takes up a fair amount of time.

You're building confidence, you're building connections with other people, you’re building your own understanding. All those things are happening while you're coding. And coding's actually a great way to cement understanding. The more you program, the more you understand the domain that you're working in. And so to say, well, we're just going to pass all that off to a machine. Well, that's not all there is to it.

A couple of days ago I saw a phrase, and it really hit me, that we're accumulating code faster than we're accumulating trust now. And that sense of trust comes from me struggling to understand some domain concept, ah, I get it! I represented it in the code. I write tests that demonstrate that I really did understand it and now, I trust my program. If we're programming together, that act of programming together means that we trust each other more.

And none of that can be automated. None of that occurs. If we prompt, we get the finger guns, the genie goes, yeah, it's all finished, boss. And it is like, well, hang on, finished. What's finished?”

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Tonight's the night 🎉 The Digital Technology Leaders Awards Ceremony is here, and we're thrilled that our work with @NantGwrtheyrn1 has been shortlisted for two awards:

🏆 Digital Project of the Year
🏆 Digital Resilience Initiative of the Year — extra special this year as the awards mark their 10th anniversary

The app brings the Llŷn Peninsula's stunning nature trails to life, bilingual in Welsh and English, with built-in Welsh learning, bird ID, and tree ID features baked right in. It's been a genuine privilege building something that supports both biodiversity and the Welsh language at the same time.

Whatever happens tonight, huge thanks to the team at Nant Gwrtheyrn for trusting us with this project, and to @Computing_News for putting on an awards programme that celebrates work like this.

Fingers crossed 🤞
#DigitalTechnologyLeadersAwards #WelshLanguage #DigitalResilience #AppDevelopment

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

You can see what we've built and what we're building on our roadmap https://t.co/1HAOrcI6fb

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Building Achene's forums and hit an interesting fork in the road. Would love course creators' takes on this.

Right now forum topics live inside each course. An educator I've been talking this through with made a good point: burying discussion inside courses means your global forum never feels alive, and users have to dig deep just to find a conversation. Pulling course topics up to a global forum would fix that: more visible activity, easier discovery.

Then we went further: what about lesson level forums, with comments timestamped to the video itself? Think YouTube live chat, but for prerecorded lessons too, so a comment sits at 4:32 because that's the exact moment someone got confused or had a thought.

If that exists, you'd also want a "study mode" that strips all of it away so you can just watch, distraction free.

Three separate decisions really:

1. Global vs. course level forums (or both?)
2. Timestamped, video anchored discussion vs. simple lesson comments
3. Whether study mode should be the default or something you opt into

If you run a course platform, or you've taught or learned on one, which of these would you actually use? What's missing?

Building Achene (0% commission, no paywalled features). Genuinely shaping this based on what creators tell me.

#EdTech #OnlineLearning #CourseCreators #BuildInPublic #IndieHackers

Should Achene have timestamped lesson comments, like YouTube live chat but for prerecorded video too?

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

I've used Ghostty quite a lot, and I still have it on my machine, but I've switched back to Warp, which I feel is better in a number of ways.

The main gripe I had with Warp was the tab auto complete not working like a normal terminal, but I changed that in the settings, and then it's all good.

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

@Pallavi_345 Javascript, back in 1996.

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

https://t.co/qXvmvbDEPM

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

1/ Building Achene in public 🛠️ After months of heads-down coding, Achene is shaping up as the no-nonsense home for independent teachers. No shareholder pressure. No commissions eating into your revenue. Just straightforward monthly pricing, unlimited students, your own domain included, and tools that actually feel good to use.

2/ Why this exists: Most platforms treat creators like tenants. We built Achene for owners. - 0% commission – Stripe payments go straight to you - Native global localisation (teach in multiple languages without duplicate courses) - Clean course builder + reliable video + student forums + progress tracking - Simple, honest tiers starting at £5/mo From £5/month. No hidden fees. No student caps.

3/ The big differentiator? It's built around real teaching, not feature checklists. Students get beautiful lesson players with timestamped notes & bookmarks. You get straightforward management, CSV imports, built-in CRM broadcasts, and community tools that don’t feel bolted on. And yes – every course gets a thoughtful review before going live. We want great education, not rubbish.

4/ Right now: The engine is a solid MVP. Next up – polish, branding, and early access. If you're an independent teacher or course creator tired of platforms that take a cut at every turn…

join the waitlist or drop a comment with what you’d want most.

Roadmap: https://t.co/8qBXGje9Mg
Site: https://t.co/H7QtZ9P5tF

Who’s in? #BuildInPublic #EdTech #OnlineCourses

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

https://t.co/kmNYVeQ01v

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Months building Achene. Zero design work. Not even a real logo.
That changes now. Next four weeks: brand, UI, UX. All of it.
Before I start, what's a product design you love? One you hate? Doesn't have to be EdTech. Anything goes.
Drop your picks below 👇
#BuildInPublic #UXDesign

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

You can also vote on our roadmap: https://t.co/1HAOrcI6fb

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Thinking about building completion certificates into Achene.
But I want to know if creators actually care — or is this just a "nice to have" that nobody uses?
Drop your vote 👇 #BuildInPublic #EdTech

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

https://t.co/1HAOrcI6fb

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

As platforms rush to embed AI, we’re pausing to ask: should they? Do the benefits outweigh risks — like AI’s huge carbon footprint amid climate crisis? Are we overusing AI, or is there a balanced middle path?

#EdTech #BuildInPublic #AI

Thoughts? Vote on our roadmap 👇️

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

https://t.co/1HAOrcI6fb

[Pete Stewart @pj_stew]

Quick look at how native localisation works on Achene. 🌍

No duplicate courses or extra accounts just to teach in multiple languages. Standard functional MVP styling for now, but the routing is solid.

Roadmap link in the comments below! 🛠️

#BuildInPublic #EdTech