I'm currently doing the 9-5 for a company as a software developer during the week and am a church organist on Sundays (as well as a few other freelance music gigs), but I would like to leave the office behind and become a freelance developer so I can spend more time on music. I've thought about this a lot, but now I want to actually DO it. What steps do I need to take to make this happen? Does anyone have experience being in this type of situation? [more inside]
posted by mrbob14 on Apr 3, 2013 - 12 answers

I'm currently looking at adopting Freshbooks or Kashoo, and would be interested in experiences with either, or other recommendations. Context: I'm a few years into freelancing (across a few different industries) and I'm working on improving my accounting, with the goals of easier tax time, smoother day-to-day operations, and better information about cashflow and budgeting. Right now I use Toggl for time tracking, and Mint for expense tracking and budgeting; I like Toggl but I'm not married to it, and Mint is starting to drive me absolutely nuts. I do invoicing and bookkeeping manually. Also welcome would be general tips on bookkeeping and accounting for small businesses / freelancers. I'm on a Mac, in Canada.
posted by sixswitch on Apr 1, 2013 - 2 answers

How do you track your marketing efforts to potential clients as a freelancer? [more inside]
posted by bradbane on Oct 19, 2012 - 2 answers

How do I set up a contract? This is my first freelance software-development project and I have no idea what I'm doing. [more inside]
posted by Chicken Boolean on May 13, 2011 - 10 answers

I'm going to be living in Cuenca, Ecuador this summer with some travel to Quito, Guayaquil and other cities. I'm a software developer and plan to work for my American clients from Ecuador. Any tips or advice on receiving payments? Or tips on my working from Ecuador in general? I plan to have clients deposit money into my American bank accounts and just using an ATM to retrieve it in Ecuador. Any better solutions ?
posted by jason9009 on May 16, 2010 - 5 answers

I found a job posting from a Mac software developer for a support/QA guru that pretty much sums up exactly what I want in a job right now. However, circumstances are not right for this particular position. How can I still do this as a job? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jul 7, 2009 - 1 answer

Roughly estimating the price and time for a custom document management system? [more inside]
posted by electric_counterpoint on Jan 14, 2009 - 6 answers

Now that I'm starting to do more part-time freelance software development, what kinds of things should I be considering? [more inside]
posted by captainawesome on Sep 17, 2008 - 5 answers

What's the going rate for a PHP developer in NYC? [more inside]
posted by defreckled on Sep 9, 2008 - 9 answers

Has anyone used mac freelance to manage their freelance biz? [more inside]
posted by typewriter on Jul 29, 2008 - 3 answers

Dearest Hivemind, I am looking to hire a freelance software developer to create some sort of workflow management tool for a small arts business. Apart from web designers/developers, I have never done this kind of thing before and am wondering if anyone could possibly have a look at my list of demands, and point me in the right direction to find my dream developer? I'm using Macs btw. [more inside]
posted by LongDrive on Jul 16, 2008 - 7 answers

Is there a good piece of software (either for WindowsXP, or web based) specifically used for tracking customers, invoices, and jobs for someone doing freelance computer tech support? [more inside]
posted by nitsuj on Apr 26, 2006 - 7 answers