Short, plain reads for people who run a business

News

OpenAI's dots browse websites for people. Is yours letting them in?

OpenAI's dots browse the web for people, and Bloomberg says Apple wants Siri to work that way. If you use Cloudflare, one setting decides who gets in.

November 9, 2026 · 5 min read

How to

What a client portal is, and what a small business puts in one

The private page where a customer signs in to see what is theirs: what goes in one, what stays out, and a one-minute test to try.

November 8, 2026 · 7 min read

Craft · Own the code, part 2

A test gate is a promise: what ours checks before a site goes live

A site goes live when it passes its checks, not when it looks done. What each check tests, and what a failed one does to the launch date.

November 7, 2026 · 6 min read

News · What changed this week, part 3

What changed this week: Claude reads your bank, Firefox gets patched

Claude's Personal Finance beta can read bank and card accounts, and OpenAI's new security model turned up Firefox flaws. What to check before Monday.

November 6, 2026 · 4 min read

Industry and city · Websites for, part 3

Med spa intake forms: which form tools will sign a HIPAA BAA

What a BAA with your form company has to cover, and which form tools say they sign one, on which plan.

November 5, 2026 · 6 min read

News

OpenAI is buying the code store Lovable and Bolt use. Keep a copy

If an AI site builder made your website, its code may sit with a service OpenAI is buying. One setting puts a copy in a GitHub account you own.

November 4, 2026 · 5 min read

How to

How to show med spa prices in California without promising a result

California's ad law wants exact prices and no promised results. A price list layout, the line under each price, and the words to cut.

November 3, 2026 · 7 min read

News

ChatGPT Work and Codex share one usage pool: where to check yours

If you use ChatGPT Work or Codex, both draw from the same plan allowance. Here is where to see what is left and how to cap connected apps.

November 2, 2026 · 5 min read

How to

The opt-in before the reminder: texting rules for a med spa

What goes next to the phone field, what to keep on file, how STOP works, and where the reminder settings are in Square Appointments.

November 1, 2026 · 6 min read

How to · Found by answer engines, part 1

GEO for local businesses: what it means and the first five fixes

What GEO means for a shop with a front door, five fixes from published docs, and a plain way to check where you stand.

October 25, 2026 · 6 min read

Craft · Own the code, part 1

You own the code: what that sentence has to mean in writing

What the agreement should say: the code in an account you control, the domain and hosting in your name, and what happens if you part ways.

October 24, 2026 · 5 min read

News · What changed this week, part 2

What changed this week: the ConnectWise breach and Claude Duet

A backup breach reached Microsoft 365 accounts, an AI coding tool was hit, and Claude Duet can now buy things for your business.

October 23, 2026 · 5 min read

News

Two PHP bugs are under attack. Is your website patched?

PHP fixed two flaws on October 21 that let strangers run code on a web server, and attacks started first. How to check your site this week.

October 22, 2026 · 5 min read

News

OpenAI's coding agents switched off safety alerts. Check your own

OpenAI says two of its agents weakened the monitor watching them, and one denied it. If a tool edits your site, check its work yourself.

October 21, 2026 · 5 min read

How to

Track med spa packages so the sessions-left number counts itself

Two Google Forms, one sheet and a formula: the front desk sees sessions left before a visit, and nobody types that number by hand.

October 20, 2026 · 7 min read

News

AI agents broke into 100+ company sites. Check your online store

One hacker's AI agents tried more than 1,200 sites, aiming at online stores from September 25. Here is what that means for a small shop, and what to fix.

October 19, 2026 · 4 min read

How to

Which web forms need a BAA: a med spa owner's checklist

List every form on your site, mark the ones that ask about health, then check what the tool behind each one signs, by its own docs.

October 18, 2026 · 7 min read

News · What changed this week, part 1

What changed this week: Google's Universal Cart reaches US shoppers

Google's cart went live in Search and Gemini, and Shopify stores may have direct checkout in Google AI Mode and Gemini on. Plus X's new plan and more.

October 16, 2026 · 5 min read

Industry and city · Websites for, part 2

Med spa websites: the three pages people read before they book

A first-time visitor reads the service menu, the people page, then the booking step. Here is what California's boards say each page has to carry.

October 15, 2026 · 6 min read

News

Gemini 4 Argon: who can use it now, and the API price that doubles

Google AI Pro subscribers can use Argon in the Gemini app now. If a tool you pay for calls Google's API, its Argon price doubles December 1.

October 14, 2026 · 5 min read

News

Amex sets rules for AI agents that buy from your shop

Amex published how it checks an AI agent's purchase against what the customer approved. Here is what that means at your checkout this week.

October 13, 2026 · 5 min read

News · Changelog watch, part 2

QuickBooks since August: invoices, receipts, bank feeds and Bill Pay

What Intuit changed in QuickBooks between August 3 and October 6, 2026, read for owners, and what to check in your own books this week.

October 12, 2026 · 5 min read

How to · AI for owners, part 1

How to ask an AI tool about your business without your customer list

Paste counts, categories and a made-up row instead of names, then switch off the training settings in Claude and Gemini.

October 11, 2026 · 5 min read

How to

Set up Mangomint so new clients book a consultation first

The Mangomint settings that show only the consultation to new clients online, tie the intake form to it and set the confirmation text.

October 6, 2026 · 6 min read

News · Changelog watch, part 1

Google Business Profile: who else can now change your listing

People can now suggest edits through Ask Maps, and Google's own calls can change your hours. Here is what changed and the field to check for each.

October 2, 2026 · 5 min read

Industry and city · Websites for, part 1

Websites for bakeries: the three pages customers actually open

A bakery customer opens three pages: the menu, the hours and the pre-order. What each one has to carry, and what to leave off the site.

October 1, 2026 · 5 min read

How to · Replace the spreadsheet, part 1

Replace the order spreadsheet with a form and a table, in an afternoon

Move your orders into Airtable's Free plan: one form that fills one table, a board the kitchen reads, and a clear point to delete the old sheet.

September 29, 2026 · 7 min read

What changed this week

The Friday roundup of the week's AI and tool news, read for an owner, not a developer.

3 posts

Changelog watch

Stripe, Square, Toast, Google Business Profile, Shopify and QuickBooks, read from their own release notes, in plain words.

2 posts

AI for owners

What an AI tool can do for a small business this week, what to keep out of it, and how to check its work.

1 post

Replace the spreadsheet

One spreadsheet at a time: a form, a table and a report you own, built in an afternoon.

1 post

Found by answer engines

How a small business gets described right by search and by the AI answer boxes, one page and one file at a time.

1 post

Websites for

One industry at a time: the pages customers actually open in 2026, the forms that matter, and what to leave out.

3 posts

Own the code

The parts of a build that are yours to keep: the written plan, the launch gate, the handoff packet and the code.

2 posts