Technology Evangelist went to Tech Cocktail 2006 in Chicago, IL to interview some of the interesting people attending. This video is the first in our series on Christopher Monaghan from Time59.com
Christopher Monaghan, a Chicago-based self-employed programmer/analyst, developed Time59 in response to his own timekeeping requirements. "I needed to track hours for each client so that I could produce invoices each month," he recalls. "My goal was to create a timekeeping system that was as quick and easy to use as e-mail."
Full transcript after the jump
What brings you to Tech Cocktail?
Well, it's a great opportunity to get my product out to some people and we got a pretty good crowd here tonight
How did you hear about Tech Cocktail?
I heard about the first one after the fact. I kept an eye on the web site and when I saw the second one coming up I got ahold of Frank Gruber who is one of the organizers, told him about my product, and he asked if I would want to demo it.
What is the product you are showing here at Tech Cocktail?
My product is called Time:59, it's located at www.time59.com. Basically it is a web based time keeping and invoicing solution for independent professionals: consultants, lawyers, anybody who bills by the hour for their services.
What is the history behind Time59?
Basically I began the product, developing the product in October of 2005 I had a beta version out around the 1st of the year. About a month ago in September I put out the latest version and it's in production now and signing up users.
What technologies have you used to build Time59?
Well it's not AJAX, it is classic ASP, but I've leveraged that technology and it's got very tight integration between the different functions of the app. So I think to get the kind of functionality that you look for an an AJAX app I think I have achieved with this just because there's such tight interaction between the different functions of the application. I guess you really have to try it, but I encourage you to try it and see what I'm talking about.
What is the business model behind Time59?
Subscription based service. It's only $19.95 a year. There are other competing products out there in this space, but they are kind of more group oriented, mine is geared toward the single user and it's priced accordingly. The other advantage is that a person using my app doesn't have to have multi-user features get in the way. It's designed for the individual user and you can cut right to the case, get your work done quickly.
Have you built Time59 by yourself or do you have a team of people working with you?
Initially started developing it myself and my experience lies really in application and database work, no so much on the design end. I was fortunate enough to run into a person who was an excellent designer and excellent XHTML/CSS coder. We were very fortuitous and really helped me bring the product to where it's at today. All the presentation code is in valid XHTML. One of my next steps is to start testing the device, start testing handheld devices with the application.
Are most of your customers based in Chicago?
My customers literally could be anywhere with an app like Time59. I've got a few down in Austin, Texas, seems to be maybe there's some word-of-mouth going on down there. You know, a few in Europe. Basically all over the country. My normal consulting work is all Chicago based. That's the amazing thing about doing an app on the web. I've tried to do other apps before, distribution and the infrastructure issues were really daunting. With doing an app on the web you've basically got hundreds of millions of potential customers without lifting a finger.
