Spin the Names is built and maintained by Ash, an independent software engineer based in Austin, TX. It's not a corporate product — there's no team of product managers, no quarterly roadmap meetings, no growth hackers trying to maximize engagement at the expense of the experience. Just one developer who wants to build something useful and keep it working well.

Why independent?

Most name picker tools on the internet are owned by large companies with advertising businesses, data collection incentives, or both. Independent software doesn't have those constraints. The goal here is a tool that works well, respects users, and stays honest about what it is and isn't.

That means no dark patterns, no manipulative design, no features engineered to maximize time-on-site. If the wheel does its job in 10 seconds and you close the tab, that's a success.

Development philosophy

• Stability first. The core experience should work reliably every time. New features don't ship until the foundation is solid.
• Performance matters. The wheel should load fast, spin smoothly, and not bloat over time. Every dependency is a liability.
• Accessibility by default. The app should work across devices, browsers, and network conditions. Not just for users on fast Wi-Fi and new hardware.
• Honest about limitations. Small teams can't do everything. The roadmap is shaped by what genuinely improves the tool, not what makes for a good press release.

What drives the roadmap?

Feature decisions are driven by user feedback, real usage patterns, and the developer's own judgment about what makes the tool better. There's no investor pressure to add features for growth metrics. If something makes the core experience more reliable, more useful, or more fair — it gets prioritized. If it adds complexity without clear benefit, it doesn't.

The most impactful features have consistently come from teachers, event organizers, and community members who reached out with specific, grounded requests. That feedback loop is something a small independent project does better than a large company.

Long-term outlook

The plan is for Spin the Names to keep improving and stay free for its core use cases. The app is supported by ads and will eventually offer optional premium features for users who want more. But the fundamental tool — spin a wheel, get a fair result — will always be free and always be the priority.

Contact

Questions, feedback, or just want to say the app helped your classroom? Reach out at ash@spinthenames.com. Everything gets read, though response times vary depending on workload.