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<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nYou can check out the landing page here: elantris.me<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though this was meant to be a \u201cvibe code\u201d project, I didn\u2019t want to skip the fundamentals. I started with a lightweight Product Requirements Document (PRD)<\/strong> to clarify what I was building, who it was for, and why it mattered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The idea behind Elantris came from a manual system I used for years to maintain connections with friends and family – a spreadsheet of birthdays, holidays, and reminders that nudged me to check in. The PRD helped me translate that system into an app that could:<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can read the full PRD here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I started with Lovable.dev<\/a>, an AI-powered tool for quickly generating full-stack web apps. With just the PRD as input, Lovable spun up a working prototype that let me test core flows in the browser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This got me surprisingly far. The big limitation, though, was when I wanted to move from web to mobile. Lovable relies on Capacitor<\/a><\/strong>, a runtime framework that lets you wrap web code into native shells for iOS and Android. It worked – I was able to build apps using Android Studio and Xcode (shout-out to my wife for lending me her Mac) – but every little change required going back to Lovable, regenerating, and then re-exporting. Tedious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s when I decided to try Kiro<\/a><\/strong>, Amazon\u2019s AI-powered IDE (similar to Cursor). Instead of relying on code generated elsewhere, I could directly guide the AI within my IDE, iterate faster, and have more control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Using the same PRD as input, I built a native Android version<\/strong> of Elantris that was more feature-rich, responsive, and easier to test.<\/p>\n\n\n This experience really highlighted the difference between low-friction prototyping tools like Lovable (great for getting started) and AI-assisted IDEs (better for building maintainable, production-ready apps).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, I wanted a simple landing page to capture the spirit of Elantris and allow people to sign up for updates. I went back to Lovable for this, since it excels at quick, clean front-end scaffolding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was as much about the process as the product. In one day, I:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Will Elantris become a full-fledged product? I\u2019m not sure yet. But the exercise showed me just how far you can push with today\u2019s AI tools – and how important it still is to start with a clear product vision before writing a single line of code.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At its core, Elantris is about something deeply human: reconnecting with people we care about. Whether this MVP becomes a long-term project or just a fun experiment, I\u2019m glad I spent the day building it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Earlier this summer, I gave myself a challenge: could I design, scope, and build a minimum viable product (MVP) app in just one day? With my wife and kids out of town, I had a rare block of uninterrupted time … Continue reading
\n\n\n\nStarting With a PRD<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nExperiment 1: Web App with Lovable.dev<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nExperiment 2: Native Android App with Kiro<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nWrapping It Up: Landing Page<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nReflections<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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