The HdG Beacon

Developer Post #1 - Launching The HdG Beacon

### Just launched HdG Beacon - a local guide and community platform for Havre de Grace. Hey everyone, **Quick background:** I've been building software and designing systems for almost two decades. Started as a tiny freelance Web Developer, Associate Programmer (after obtain my degree while playing collegiate basketball for my Uni), Software Engineer working on DoD systems, became a Senior Engineer, then Tech Lead for Special Access Programs (the stuff I still can't talk about). Moved on to a Cyber Security company as Lead Senior DevOps Engineer, now Lead Senior Solutions Architect designing Zero Trust systems for government and defense. But here's the thing - I've always been building on the side. Founded the Indie Game Studios NITETIME Studios in 2014 and spent 5 years developing Chrono Ghost (developed in Unity), a time-manipulation puzzle platformer, while working full-time in defense. Shipped it in 2019 (available on Steam). Those late nights coding game mechanics after designing classified systems taught me that complex problems need simple solutions, whether it's Pentagon security or pixel-perfect jumps. Now I'm bringing both worlds together with HdG Beacon - applying enterprise architecture principles and game design thinking to solve a local problem. **What HdG Beacon does:** - Find local businesses, events, and activities - Build day-trip itineraries - Real-time updates on what's happening downtown - Local Discovery Challenges - Business directory with hours/contact info **Tech details (for those interested):** - Built with Next.js and Supabase - Hosted on Vercel - Mobile-first design - ~1 second load times - PWA-ready **On using AI in development:** Let me be real - AI helped accelerate this project, but it's like how Nintendo uses Unreal Engine for prototyping Zelda mechanics. The engine doesn't make the game, it just helps you test ideas faster. **I used AI to:** - Generate boilerplate code (saved hours on CRUD operations) - Debug Supabase policies (those RLS rules are tricky) - Optimize database queries - Write initial unit and E2E test suites But every feature, every design decision, every line that matters? That's human crafted. AI is like having a really fast junior developer who needs constant supervision. Great for grunt work, but you still need to architect the solution, make the hard decisions, and polish everything. Think of it like level design in games - procedural generation can create 1000 levels, but the 10 levels players remember? Those are handcrafted. Same reason Chrono Ghost took 5 years - the time mechanics needed that human touch to feel right (AI was NOT around back then!). Been working on HDG Beacon for a while now. Goal was to make something and a platform actually useful for locals and visitors, not just another tech demo. After years of building for the government and gamers, it's nice to build for neighbors and my family. Thanks for checking out The HdG Beacon and reading this devlog! More to come! If you're a local business owner and want to update or add your listing, just message me using our contact form or reach out on FB. -Kelly Davis