Garage Dollar (G$) is the hottest location based service for folks that love finding deals at garage sales. Fresh off the debugging stack of Victus Media the service is live at GarageDollar.com and couldn't be easier to use.
Want to find out about Garage or Yard sales in your area, then subscribe. Want to advertise or broadcast your garage sale to interested people in your area? Go ahead it's only a buck to do so. If you're an avid garage sale fan please pass on word about the service, it'll improve as more folks use it.
This is an alpha version of the service so expect a lot more polishing and mobile web utility goodness in the coming weeks.
A look on the inside of the "design process"
Here's a morning email I shot to Tyler, the guy that's hacking out the tool in a web framework he learned last week*:
Imagine I'm a subscriber (and I am!). Is garage dollar dynamic enough to move with me? Not necessarily now, but can it be without much effort.
It would make events like homing beacons to people that subscribe to those events with mobile devices. In version 3.4 (as you know I love making stuff up) there could be a blinking icon at a location that increases as people close in. My location is known by gps, and the location of the event is known by garage sale. How do we get that location on mobile device maps?
Optionally their phone could emit different tones as they get closer to an event destination. Garage sale would be like the hot and cold game for finding hidden stuff "you're getting warmer".
What can I do today to help this become a reality? Do we need an iPhone /android app maker expert?
Garage dollar is another example of the observer pattern that relates events, locations, and people interested.
It's cool to think about how many observer tools/services people could really use with modern mobile web juice.
The search continues for the viral pattern.
Notes:
*= web framework -> Erlang & Sinatra. More to learn for me as usual I'll be playing old man catchup on what's underneath the hood, but it's a lot of fun :)
Google buzz friends, sorry for the content overlap, I needed to blog a little about G$ or Garage Dollar, Hacker News visitors of course all feedback appreciated