About

I write code,
and leave notes
right beside it.

Sidenote is the weekly work log of a solo developer building products on their own. Between deploy logs and failed experiments, I quietly jot down what I learned along the way. Not neat conclusions, but the process exactly as it happens.

Vertical portrait of a developer seated at a desk by the window in their studio

Who

Hi, I'm Jung Min-woo.

After 8 years as a backend engineer, I've been building products under my own name since 2020. I learned plenty on big teams, but it turns out I'm better suited to owning something end to end.

Right now I run a single scheduling SaaS for small teams, 'Turning,' all by myself. From server deploys to customer support to issuing tax invoices, it's all on me.

I prefer code that still runs fine six months later over flashy features. Rather than chasing the newest framework, I tend to use familiar tools long and deep.

Sidenote is a byproduct of that process. Every Friday, I write up one piece on the bugs I fixed that week, the decisions I made, and the things I missed. It's not meant to teach anyone — it's more like a memo to the me of six months from now.

Jung Min-woo

Indie Maker · Backend Engineer · Solo Operator of 'Turning'

Timeline

The Road So Far

2016

First Commit

Joined a startup as a backend engineer. Taking on the payment system for the first time, I learned the true weight of the word 'concurrency.'

2018

First Personal Deploy

Put a weekend-built link organizer app on a single EC2 instance. I was the only user, but it was the first time I ever shipped something to the world from start to finish.

2020

Going Independent

Left the company to become a full-time indie maker. The year I learned to manage my bank balance and my fear at the same time.

2021

First Paying Customer

The first payment notification from 'Turning' rang out. ₩9,900. I stared at that screen all day long.

2023

Sidenote Begins

I decided to make my work log public and published my first piece. To stop putting it off with 'I'll write it once it's finished.'

Now

Note No. 148

Alongside 3,200 subscribers, I'm writing one more note this week too. Still every Friday evening.

Stack

Tools I Use

Chosen for longevity over trendiness. The kind of things so ingrained in my hands that I won't slip up even at 3 a.m.

No. 01 Language

Languages

TypeScript
Go
Python

No. 02 Framework

Frameworks

Next.js
Hono
SvelteKit

No. 03 Infra

Infrastructure

Fly.io
PostgreSQL
Cloudflare

No. 04 Writing

Writing

Obsidian
Bear
A handwritten A5 notebook

Principle

Consistency over completion.
A little every week.

More than one grand achievement, I believe in a small light that never goes out and stays on for a long time. That's the only method I've learned over the past 5 years.

I write code,and leave notesright beside it.