DEV Community: stackbento

Building an Invoice chase automation system : n8n

stackbento — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 21:19:55 +0000

🔧 What I built:
Automated invoice reminder system in n8n
that reads a Google Sheet, sends Gmail reminders
to unpaid clients, and updates the sheet automatically.

📊 The result:
3 unpaid invoices → reminders sent + sheet updated
in one workflow run. Zero manual work.

🧠 Biggest lesson:
"Column to match on" must be a unique ID —
cost me an hour. Won't forget it.

🔜 Tomorrow:
Escalating reminders — 4 email tones
based on how many days overdue.

Day 1 of building in public. 🚀

n8n #automation #buildinpublic

Day 20 : Django Learning

stackbento — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 19:46:25 +0000

Nothing much again to log in, the struggle with setting up database in Render and avoid the bad gateway issue. I could not figure it out, irrespective of many changes, I would like to seek out some help!

Please help me to set this up and start working again, if not, I have to stick to the default one that comes with Django!

Django #WebDevelopment #Python #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #BeginnerDev #postgresql

Day 19 : Django Learnings

stackbento — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 22:02:14 +0000

Nothing much to mention today, I just wanted to take some rest!
After some failed attempts to set up my database over Render.¨

Youtube videos are lot of confusing, if you have any ideas or suggestions on how to learn this, please help me out!

Django #WebDevelopment #Python #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #BeginnerDev #postgresql

Day 18 Django learnings

stackbento — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 22:33:48 +0000

🚀 Django Learning Journey – Day 18

Another day, another chapter unlocked in my Django learning journey!

Today, my curiosity took control. I asked myself:
“If the project will eventually be hosted online… why not learn how to use a real cloud database right now?”

So instead of sticking with Django’s default sqlite3, I explored the world of cloud-based PostgreSQL databases — especially the ones offered by Render.

🧭 Exploring Cloud Databases

I spent time reading articles, browsing StackOverflow, and watching YouTube tutorials on how Django connects to external databases.

There are so many choices out there, but I decided not to overwhelm myself.
Since my first project is already deployed on Render, I stuck with it and learned how to provision a PostgreSQL database in the free tier.

⚙️ Setting Up a Test Project

To avoid breaking my main project, I created a test Django project and pretended this was a real production setup.

Surprisingly, all the setup felt like a quick refresher — I almost remember all the commands now!
Also installed the usual suspects right away:

whitenoise

gunicorn

Feels nice to see how the brain actually learns through repetition. 😄

🔑 Key Learnings of the Day

To connect Django to an external PostgreSQL database, these two packages became essential:

pip install psycopg2
pip install dj-database-url

I’m still learning what psycopg2 does under the hood,
but I know now that it helps Django speak to PostgreSQL.

dj-database-url, on the other hand, was very clear:
It helps parse the database URL from environment variables.

Using the parsed URL, I updated the settings.py file and fed the database link through Render’s environment variables.

📤 Pushed to Git → Deployed → Nervous Excitement

After setting everything locally:

Pushed to GitHub

Deployed to Render

And yes… that feeling of watching a project deploy still hits different!
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I genuinely get excited like a kid every time the logs scroll and the “Deploying…” animation runs. 😄

But then…

❌ “Bad Request (400)” — The Plot Twist

Everything looked perfect…
until I hit a 400 Bad Request error.

At this point, I had no clue what the issue was.
Instead of stressing, I chose to stop, breathe, and continue tomorrow with a fresh mind.

❓ Honest Questions to the Community

1️⃣ Should I continue learning with PostgreSQL or stick to Django’s default sqlite3 while learning?
2️⃣ If I build the project using sqlite3, can I later migrate the database to PostgreSQL during deployment?
3️⃣ Is using a cloud database too early for a beginner, or is this the right level of curiosity?

Would love to hear honest suggestions!

❤️ Signing Off

Not a huge coding day, but a massive learning day.
I’m realising something important:

Deployment teaches you things that tutorials never do.

And I’m excited to wake up tomorrow and fix that 400 error!

If you’ve ever felt this same excitement (or confusion!) while connecting databases or deploying, tell me your story in the comments!

Django #Render #WebDevelopment #Python #DeployYourApp #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #BeginnerDev #postgresql

Django Learning Day 17

stackbento — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 22:55:00 +0000

🚀 Django Learning Journey – Day 17

Today was not the smoothest day health-wise, but I promised myself one thing: no two consecutive days without touching code.
So even with low energy, I showed up — and even the “basic setup” taught me something valuable.

⚠️ The CommandError Lesson

I started by creating my new Django app…
and instantly faced a CommandError.

Why?
Because I named my app “authentication” — which is already a Python module.

Django simply said:
❌ “You cannot use built-in module names as app names.”

It caught me off guard, but taught me an important rule:
✨ Never use existing Python module names as your app name.

How many of you fell into the same trap?
Tell me I’m not alone! 😄

📦 Best Practice Repeated: Requirements Setup

From my previous project, I continued the same practice:

pip freeze > requirements.txt

Every time I start a new project, this has already become a habit — and a really helpful one.

❓ Curious Question #1 — Linking URLs for Multiple Apps

Now that I’m building an authentication system as a separate app, I have one question for the community:

🧭 What is the best way to structure URLs when you have multiple Django apps?
Especially for something like an “auth” app?

Should we:

Create a urls.py inside every app?

Or keep everything inside the main project urls.py?

Or include each app's URLs with path("auth/", include("auth_app.urls"))?

Would love to hear how you all manage this in real-world projects!

❓ Curious Question #2 — External Databases on Render

Since I deployed my first project on Render, I’m curious:

📌 How do you connect Render apps to external databases like PostgreSQL?
Do you configure them in environment variables?
Or use Render’s built-in PostgreSQL service?

Any tips or gotchas to watch out for?

❤️ Signing Off

Not the most productive day in terms of coding…
But a huge win in terms of consistency and learning.

Even on slow days, the journey continues.
Tomorrow, I hope to pick up more momentum and dive deeper into building the authentication workflow.

Let me know your thoughts or suggestions — always eager to learn from this wonderful community!

Day 16 : Rest

stackbento — Wed, 19 Nov 2025 22:47:23 +0000

Nothing much to mention today, I just wanted to take some rest!
And preparing the structure for the next project with Authentication!

Youtube videos are lot of confusing, if you have any ideas or suggestions on how to learn this, please help me out!

Django #WebDevelopment #Python #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #BeginnerDev #postgresql

Day 15 Django Learning : Deploy

stackbento — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 20:37:11 +0000

🚀 Django Learning Journey – Day 15

🎉 My first ever Django project is officially LIVE on the internet!
Today feels incredibly special — the anxiety, the errors, the retries… everything was worth it.

🛠️ Fixing “DisallowedHost” & Diving Into Deployment

The day started with the intimidating “DisallowedHost at /” error.
But that error pushed me into learning so much more:

🧠 What “hosts” actually mean in Django

🌱 Why production environments care about allowed URLs

🔐 And how environment variables work in real-world apps

That’s when I discovered python-dotenv.
Installed it → created my .env → moved sensitive settings inside it.
A small step, but a big leap in understanding real project structure.

📦 Preparing for Deployment

One of the biggest takeaways today:

pip freeze > requirements.txt

This single command saved me from dependency nightmares during deployment.

To make things clean & reliable:

Reinstalled gunicorn

Added whitenoise to serve static files

Updated settings.py (yes… I left an extra comma at the end initially 😅)

Created a proper Procfile → web: gunicorn todo_app.wsgi

Then pushed everything to GitHub → cleared the build cache → clicked deploy.

🌐 The AWE moment

When Render said “Build Successful”, my heart was racing.
Clicked the link…
And there it was — MY app. Live. On the actual internet.

To double-check, I asked a friend to test.
He posted “Atun” just to troll me 😂
And the app worked flawlessly.

This feeling?
Inexplicable. Unreal. Motivating.
Exactly the kind of moment that makes all the struggles worth it.

📝 Looking Back: 15 Days of Learning

14 days ago, deployment felt far away.
I even planned for 14 days… but finished on Day 15.
Not bad for a first project — and a journey full of:

Errors

Debugging

Rethinking

Googling

Trying again

And again

I documented the journey not just to share successes, but to show the struggles too.
If even one learner finds courage from this — I’ll be happy.

🔐 Next Stop: Authentication + User Dashboards

For my second project, I’ll build:

User authentication

Individual user dashboards

Better UI/UX

New logic

Cleaner, more scalable structure

This journey has only begun. Django is deep, powerful, and exciting.

💬 Tell me your story!

What was your reaction when you first saw your project live?
Did you scream? Celebrate? Panic? Refresh your browser 20 times like me? 😄
Would love to hear it in the comments.

❤️ Thank You

To everyone supporting, encouraging, and guiding me — thank you.
Stay tuned — I’m soon sharing a full list of all commands I used, from start → deployment. Might help someone out there.

Django #Render #WebDevelopment #Python #DeployYourApp #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #BeginnerDev #FullStackJourney

repository available at : https://github.com/stackbento/Django-To-Do-List

Django Deployment : Day 14

stackbento — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 22:50:58 +0000

🚀 Django Learning Journey – Day 14

Today was the BIG day — I tried deploying my first ever Django app!
The excitement was real… until the errors started pouring in 😄

🌐 Choosing a Free Tier

After researching deployment options, I chose Render.
Creating an account using GitHub was super smooth…

But everything after that was a rollercoaster 🚀🔥

💡 Important Lessons I Learned Today
1️⃣ The importance of requirements.txt

I finally understood why this file is crucial.
Your project might run locally — but the server needs to know exactly what to install.

2️⃣ Why people name their environment folder .env

Most tutorials use .env instead of venv or virt.
Today I learned the reason: Render automatically picks it up only if it starts with a dot!
Mine didn’t… so Render didn’t detect it 🤦‍♂️

3️⃣ Static files & the root directory

I had to configure a root directory for collecting static files and then run:

python manage.py collectstatic --noinput

I don’t fully understand what --noinput does yet…
But it made the build succeed, so I’ll take the win 🤣

4️⃣ Gunicorn for deployment

Installed gunicorn and updated the start command:

gunicorn todo_app.wsgi:application --bind 0.0.0.0:$PORT

This finally got the app very close to going live.

🎉 The App Actually Went Live!!

Here’s the URL I got on Render:
🌐 https://to-do-list-django-4yp3.onrender.com

I clicked with excitement…
and then…

❌ “DisallowedHost at /”

My jaw dropped.
Locally everything works perfectly — but on the cloud? Not so much.

This was such an important reality check:

“Just because it works on your machine doesn't mean it works on the server.”

I’m now learning why Django requires updating ALLOWED_HOSTS and what a server actually is.

🤝 I Need Some Help

If you’ve deployed Django apps multiple times:

How do you fix this DisallowedHost issue cleanly?

What helped you understand how servers work without getting intimidated?

What shocked you during your first deployment attempt?

🥹 Final Thoughts

Even though today was full of errors…
Seeing my project almost live made me speechless.

The learning curve is steep — but incredibly rewarding.

Thank you all for being part of this journey 🙏
Tomorrow, I’ll tackle the deployment issues again and get this app properly LIVE!

Failed yet proud : https://to-do-list-django-4yp3.onrender.com

Django #Render #WebDevelopment #Python #Deployment #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode

Day 13 Django Learning

stackbento — Sun, 16 Nov 2025 22:30:50 +0000

🚀 Django Learning Journey – Day 13

Today I truly realized how powerful Bootstrap is!
For someone like me who isn’t naturally inclined toward UI/UX or frontend design — Bootstrap feels like magic.
A total time saver.

🎨 Making My App Prettier

I updated my home.html with:

✔️ Different button colors for completed tasks

❗ “Danger” red button for incomplete tasks

🗑️ A neat “Delete” button

🎨 A fresh, minimal layout

It’s not an award-winning UI 😄
But for my first project… I actually love how decent it looks now.

And honestly — I have gained massive respect for frontend developers and UI/UX designers.
Making things look good is a whole different skill set!

⚙️ Django Learning So Far

It’s been 13 days…
From starting a Django project → building CRUD → forms → messages → templates → static files → Git…

Just one step remains:

Deployment.

This one intimidates me a bit — where to start, which free tier to use, what all configs are needed…
But I’m excited to learn this next.

🔐 What’s Next?

This To-Do app doesn’t use complex DB logic or authentication.
So I’m planning to build a similar project, but:

🔑 With proper authentication

👥 User-specific data

🛠️ Some real-world logic

🧩 Maybe a dashboard

Most tutorials stop after CRUD + basic auth…
But I want to actually understand how to use Django to its full potential.

If you’re experienced with Django —
👉 What should I learn next to really level up?

🤔 Curious Question

When you finished your very first Django project:

What were you thinking right before deployment?

What nightmares did you face?

And what was your reaction when you finally saw your app LIVE on the internet?

I’d really love to hear your stories!

🙏 Thanks for reading

This journey is getting more exciting every day — and your support keeps me going.

Django #WebDevelopment #Python #LearningInPublic #100DaysOfCode #Bootstrap

Day 12 of Django Learning

stackbento — Sat, 15 Nov 2025 22:15:44 +0000

Today marks one of the most important milestones in my Django journey — I finally completed my first fully working app: a To-Do List! 🎉

It took me quite a few challenging days, debugging loops, fixing URLs, understanding instance logic, and a lot of trial & error…
But that’s exactly what made today feel so rewarding.

🔍 Debugging the Template Error — The Turning Point

I wanted to finish the last missing feature: editing a task.
But instead… Django welcomed me with a big red TemplateDoesNotExist error.

At first, I thought:
“Okay, it has to be the URL.”
And yes — my urls.py did have a mistake. I fixed it… but the same error showed up again.

My brain tends to freeze a little now whenever an error appears 😅 — and I keep forgetting to take screenshots for my whiteboard.
But the good part?
I stay focused on the error and follow the thread until I find the root cause.

Google helped… StackOverflow helped even more…
But the biggest help?
Reverse engineering my own code.

🧠 The Real Fix — Understanding Forms, IDs & Instances

After confirming that my URL was fine, I checked views.py — everything looked correct.
Then it hit me:

➡️ My new edit.html file didn’t have a form.
➡️ I hadn’t linked the update logic to the template.
➡️ The form didn’t know which specific item (via pk=list_id) it was supposed to edit.

And then came today’s biggest learning:

⭐ The concept of instance in Django forms

This one clicked hard.
Passing an existing object to a form as an instance is what allows Django to update a specific record rather than creating a new one.

This was the missing piece.
Once I added it and redirected properly —
⏩ Everything worked. Smoothly.

A genuine “YESSS!” moment.
One of those small-but-big victories in programming.

🎨 What’s Next?

My app is functional now… but not yet pretty 😄
Next steps:

Improve the UI/UX using Bootstrap

Deploy my first Django app

Celebrate my first baby steps toward becoming a Django developer

🤔 Curiosity Corner

What were your thoughts when you completed your first app?
Did deployment feel exciting or intimidating?
Let me know — I’d love to learn from your experiences!

🙏 Thank You!

To everyone who has been supporting me in this journey — your comments, tips, and encouragement mean a lot.
Slowly but surely, it’s all coming together.

Django #Python #LearningInPublic #WebDevelopment #100DaysOfCode #ProgrammerJourney

Day 11 Django Learning

stackbento — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 22:20:47 +0000

Django Learning Journey - Day 11

Today I'm sick.

No code written.
No features built.
Just rest.

10 days straight of showing up, learning, building.
Today my body said "stop."

So I'm listening.

Tomorrow, I'll tackle that edit functionality with fresh energy.

Sometimes the most productive thing one can do is rest.

django #learninginpublic #100dasyofcode #webdev #python

Day 10 Django Learning.

stackbento — Thu, 13 Nov 2025 22:34:51 +0000

🧠 Django Learning Journey – Day 10

Today was supposed to be the day — the final step of CRUD, the “Update/Edit” functionality.
I started full of excitement… and ended completely exhausted.
My first truly unsuccessful coding day.
And I think… that’s okay.

🔧 The Plan (which seemed simple)

Like the last two days, I:

Created a new edit view in views.py

Added the URL mapping with pk=list_id

Picked the item’s ID from home.html

Created a new edit.html template where the specific item should be edited

In theory:
Click → Open edit page → Edit item → Save → Redirect to home
Easy… right?
But the logic just didn’t click today.

🧨 What Actually Happened

I did create the link in home.html.
I did create edit.html.
But either the view isn’t catching the item…
or the template isn’t rendering it…
or both!

I stared at the code for too long and nothing made sense anymore.
Even forgot to capture screenshots properly — that’s how chaotic it felt.

Tomorrow, with a fresh mind, I’ll revisit the entire “Update” flow step by step.

😮‍💨 The Honest Part

Today came with frustration, doubt, and that little whisper:
“Why isn’t this working? Am I missing something basic?”

But this is part of the journey.
Just like we debug code, we debug our thoughts too.
Some days the chunk falls perfectly into place…
Today’s chunk didn’t. And that’s fine.

💬 I Need Your Inputs

If you’ve built your first CRUD project in Django:

Did the Update/Edit step frustrate you too?

Where did you struggle?

Any tips on where I might be messing up — views, template, or the redirect flow?

Let me know.
Your insights might save tomorrow’s session!

🔁 Onward

Every other day, something new clicked.
Today didn’t.
But tomorrow is still there — waiting for a fresher mind and a stronger developer.

Django #Python #CRUD #LearningInPublic #WebDevelopment #100DaysOfCode