Slide 1 of 14 · click the slide or use the arrow keys for the next pointTap the slide or Next for the next point
A talk by Anu Jolliffe
Sneak peek of the new Where’s Anu
Ten weeks. One person. Claude wrote the code. This talk is about everything else: the Before Times Index, my hours at the keyboard, and the three ways to make software.
The Before Times Index compares two costs: building the site the classic way, with a developer typing every line, and building it with AI, my own hours included. For Where’s Anu, the classic way costs 42 times as much, counting only the hours my logs can prove.
- Monday, November 2, 2026
- Fort Tectoria, Victoria, BC
- What’s New with Claude, the Claude Community event
- 14 slides, about 7 minutes
The slides as text
SNEAK PEEK OF THE NEW Where’s Anu? Live today at peek.wheresanu.ca 10 weeks. 1 person. Claude wrote the code. Anu Jolliffe · Claude Community event · Fort Tectoria · Monday, November 2, 2026 You are here Fort Tectoria Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Hi, I’m Anu Jolliffe. 1994 Ran a dial-up bulletin board on Salt Spring Island, at 28.8k 1997 Registered my first domain name 2026 If there’s a tech event in Victoria, I usually know about it Page 63, Your Guide to Local Business, Gulf Islands Driftwood, 1994 Salt Spring Island Archives “…bed and breakfast establishments, their prices, services and a full colour photograph of the room…”
Victoria’s tech events are everywhere. And nowhere. A listing tells you what’s on. It doesn’t tell you whether to go. Meetup Luma Eventbrite LinkedIn Slack Organizers’ websites Newsletters Word of mouth Where’s Anu Every tech event I know about, in one place, with my plan on each and my take on most. ★ I’m going Recommended Just sharing So far in 2026, in person, around Greater Victoria: 342 events 92 organizers 79 venues 5,206+ event registrations
THE NEW WHERE’S ANU Here it is. Tonight’s event, on the new site. My plan, and my take, in my own words. wheresanu.ca/events/victoria-whats-new-with-claude-the-5-5-family-312
Three ways to make software Types the code Checks the code Knows how it works Makes the calls Classic coding The Before Times You You You You Vibe coding Great for playing, personal tools and prototypes The tool Nobody Nobody has to The tool, mostly Coding AI-assisted. How Where’s Anu was built. AI agents AI agents and tests You You
INTRODUCING The Before Times Index What the work would have cost the classic way What it cost with AI, my own hours included
BEFORE TIMES INDEX 42× The classic way costs 42 times as much, counting only the hours my logs can prove. The classic way $930,000 14,534 developer hours: about 7 years for one person With AI $22,000 3 Claude Teams subscriptions for 10 weeks, plus 334 hours of my time, from my logs ZOOM IN ON “WITH AI” Claude: $1,000 My time: $21,000, 96% 569 finished changes (pull requests) since September 28: 510,117 lines of code, tests, docs and mockups. In Canadian dollars. An order of magnitude, not an invoice. The workings are on the backup slide.
This was not a weekend. At the keyboard (measured) My working day: first to last message Weekends (I worked those too) 0 h 6 h 12 h 18 h 24 h Aug 22 Sep 5 Sep 19 Oct 3 Oct 17 Oct 31 Sep 28: the new site’s code begins Sunday, October 25: 12 h at the keyboard 334 h at the keyboard, measured 3,584 messages from me to the agents 15 h first message to last, a typical day since September 28 5 h at the keyboard on a typical weekday, 7 on weekends
One day: Sunday, October 25 One of my biggest days, midnight to midnight. Each line is an AI agent on a job. Each red dot is me. An AI agent at work (one line per session) A message from me 12 a.m. 3 a.m. 6 a.m. 9 a.m. Noon 3 p.m. 6 p.m. 9 p.m. 12 a.m. 7:04 a.m.: 12 agents working at the same moment Asleep 54 agent sessions 12 working at the same moment 113 messages from me 12 h at the keyboard
What a weekend won’t get you Three sites: dev, test and live. Every change is tried on dev, then test, before it goes live. Checks on every change, with 124,000 lines of tests. Security reviews, secure sign-in, and AI can’t change live data without my approval. Accessible: built so screen readers and keyboards work (WCAG 2.2 AA). 38 AI reviewer personas, each a different reader, read every page and every word. Privacy, terms and an AI policy, in plain words. None of it happens by itself. Somebody has to decide it matters.
I don’t read the code anymore. So what’s left? Taste Knowing what good looks like. Judgement Knowing what to build, what to cut, and when to say no. AI has no taste. It multiplies yours. ON WHERE’S ANU, THAT MEANT Three plain labels, not star ratings No paid listings No photos of people without their yes Two built features, held back for launch Glenn Pearce A local peer in the software leadership arena
LIVE NOW wheresanu.ca Free. Find your next event. If it says I’m going, come say hello. 10 weeks. 1 person. Claude wrote the code. I made the calls. peek.wheresanu.ca
WANT TO TRY IT YOURSELF? Reloaded Labs #01 Gear Recognition Challenge A one-day building contest. A rider snaps a photo of used motorcycle gear; your prototype decides: make an offer, or not? Saturday, November 21, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Moto Reloaded Gear, 508 Herald St Prizes: $1,000, $500 and $100 Free. Teams of 1 to 4, or join one on the day. 18+ Presented by TURN Events. I’m one of the hosts. Request a spot luma.com/ylw4hauh
Thank you. Where’s Anu Find your next event peek.wheresanu.ca Reloaded Labs November 21 at Moto Reloaded luma.com/ylw4hauh