Introduction

Welcome to Keepin' Tracks documentation and tutorials.

Here you will find various articles and how-to's that I will write as I build my project architecture.

It will mostly be about digital and computer stuff, but who knows where time will lead me. I hope you find it resourceful and don't hesitate to provide your feedbacks!

Computer building

Choosing your parts

References

• PC Part picker - Get an idea of the cost of your build

Website building

Types of websites

Static

Think of it as a restaurant website displaying only their menu. Everything is pre-compiled and requested pages are returned to visitors. (Your local pizzeria)

Web application

Image another restaurant, but with more budget. Their website has an authentication system for customers to connect, order food and earn fidelity points. (Dominos)

This kind of website needs computers running 24/7 in order to processed orders and customers activity to display the latest data to visitors and process online orders and send them to the right restaurants.

There is a lot more complexity to these websites such as the following different parts:

• Frontend: The logic that will display what we see on the screen
• Backend: The logic that will send the data to display to the frontend
• Database: The storage system where data is stored and updated in real time
• Proxy: A service that will merge the frontend and backend service together behind the same domain name

Static website

Hugo static website generator

References

• Hugo's official documentation

Papermod Hugo Theme

References

• Papermod's official documentation

Tutorials

Here you will find various tutorials on different subjects and softwares.

Google Sheet

Set up

1. From your google account, go to your Google Drive
2. Create a new file of type Google Sheets

Creating a sheet for clean data tracking

1. In a blank tab, insert a blank table
2. In the top corner of the sheet click at the left of column A to select all cells (Or Ctrl+A / CMD + A)
3. Set the Text wrapping to be "wrap". This will make long text easier to read in my opinion
4. Start naming your columns and set their type so dates and numbers will be formated the same for all the column's data

Tips

• When a column needs to have a formula to calculate its values. Enter the formula in the first row of the table and extend it to all the cells

Health Tracking Sheet

Tracking weight

1. Create a tab Weight
2. Create a table Weight
3. Add the following columns (Name: Data Type)
   • Date: Date
   • Weight: Number

Tracking exercises

1. Create a tab Exercises and another one ExerciseEntries

2. In the Exercises tab, create a table Exercises and add the following columns:

3. In the ExerciseEntries tab, create a table ExerciseEntries and add the following columns:

Wealth Tracking Sheet

1. Create a sheet "Wealth"

Setting up the base : Accounts

1. Name first tab: "Accounts"
2. Create a table named "Accounts"
3. Set up the columns (Name: Data type)
   • Account: Text
   • Type: Dropdown (With values: Cash, Credit, Investing, Debt, Loan)
   • Starting amount: Currency
     • The balance of the account before the first transactions you'll record in the spreadsheet
   • Current value: Currency
     • Used for Investing accounts which value is not related to transactions in them.
   • Balance: Currency
     • Formula: to be defined once Transaction table is set

Setting up the Transaction table

1. Create a new tab Transactions
2. Create a table named "Transactions"
3. Set up the columns (Name: Data type)
   • Date: Date
   • Amount: Currency
   • Account: Dropdown from range (=Accounts!$A$2:$A)

Calculating accounts balance in real time

1. Add formula to table "Accounts", column balance

=IF(
    Accounts[Current value],
    Accounts[Current value],
    Accounts[Starting amount] + SUMIF(
        Transactions[Account],
        Accounts[Account],
        Transactions[Amount]
    )
)

Categorizing transactions

Set up categories

1. Create a new table "Categories" with a new table "Categories"
2. Set up the columns (Name: Data type)
   • Category: Text
3. Add column "Category" in tab "Transactions"
   • Category: Dropdown from range () (Categories!A2:A)

Set up sub categories

1. Create a new table "Categories" with a new table "Sub categories"
2. Set up the columns (Name: Data type)
   • Sub category: Text
   • Category: Dropdown from range (Categories!A2:A)
3. Add column "Sub category" in tab "Transactions"
   • Sub category: Dropdown from range () (Sub categories!A2:A)

Set up payees

1. Create a new table "Categories" with a new table "Payees"
2. Set up the columns (Name: Data type)
   • Payee: Text
3. Add column "Payee" in tab "Transactions"
   • Payee: Dropdown from range () (Payees!A2:A)

Need more precision?

1. Add columns to table "Transactions"
   • Description: Text
   • Tax related: Checkbox

Appsheet

Set up

Create your first application

1. Open Appsheet and sign in with your Google account
   • Appsheet's website
2. Create an app
   • Start with existing data
   • Name of the app
   • Category
3. Press choose your Data
   • Google Sheet
   • Select your tracking Spreadsheet
4. Wait then press "Customize with appsheet"
5. You will now receive a link to the app in your email
6. Install the app on your mobile device
   • Install Appsheet from your device app store
   • Access App Gallery
   • Click on the app
   • Click on the menu top left
   • Click on Add shortcut
   • On ios click on the icon in the top right, then add to home screen

Congratulations you now created a data application. These applications can be shared to up to 10 people for free before you have to subscribe to a plan.

Copy an existing app

1. Access to an application portfolio
   • Keepin' Tracks Portfolio
2. Select the app you desire
   • You are now in read only mode of the app architecture
3. From the left side bar, access to the bottom icon named "Manage"
4. Press "Copy App"

Tips and tricks

• Everytime the column structure is modified in Google Sheet, we need to regenerate the schema in Appsheet for that data, else the app won't work anymore.
• If a tab schema appears with the column names from the second row values, go to the tab in Google Sheets and apply Bold to the first row, then regenerate the schema in appsheet.

Health Tracking App

This tutorial assumes that Google Sheet - Health tracking spreadsheet tutorial has been completed.

Tracking weight

Setting up the data

1. In the Data navigation section, select the + to add new data
2. Select your Health spreadsheet and Weight tab, then Add to app
3. Validate all data types
   • Date: DateTime
   • Weight: Decimal
   • Variation: Percent
4. Validate all initial values
   • Date: NOW()
   • All others should be empty
5. Edit formating (Click on the pencil on the left of the column)
   • Date
     • Ignore seconds
     • Use long date format

Setting up the visuals

1. Access to the Views section from the sidebar just under the data section
2. Add a primary navigation
   • View name: Weight
   • For this data: Weight
   • View type: Chart
   • Edit view options
     • Chart type: Col series
     • Chart columns: Weight
     • Sort by: Date ascending
   • Edit Display options
     • icon: balance-scale

Tracking exercises

Exercises data

1. Add the Exercises tabs to the data
2. Validate data types
   • Exercise: Text
   • Notes: LongText
3. Validate requirements

Exercise entries data

1. Add the ExerciseEntries tabs to the data
2. Validate data types
   • Date: DateTime
   • Exercise: Ref with source table "Exercises"
   • Quantity: Number
   • Duration: Duration
3. Validate requirements
   • Date: Required
   • All others are not required
4. Validate all initial values
   • Date: NOW()
   • All others should be empty
5. Edit formating (Click on the pencil on the left of the column)
   • Date
     • Ignore seconds
     • Use long date format
6. Add virtual columns
   • Total duration
     • App formula: TOTALHOURS([Duration])
     • Type: Decimal
   • End of week
     • App Formula: EOWEEK([Date])
     • Type: Date
     • Use long date format

Setting up the visuals

1. Access to the Views section from the sidebar just under the data section
2. Add a reference view
   • View name: Exercises quantity
   • For this data: ExerciseEntries
   • View type: Deck
   • Edit view options
     • Sort by: Date - descending
     • Group by:
       • End of week - Descending
       • Exercise - Ascending
     • Group aggregate: SUM::Quantity
     • Primary header: Date
     • Secondary header: None
     • Summary column: Quantity
     • Show action bar (Makes display cleaner)
   • Edit Display options
     • icon: dumbbell
3. Duplicate Exercises quantity
   • Rename: Exercises duration
   • Group aggregate: SUM :: Total duration
   • icon: running
4. Create a new view
   • View name: Exercise Tracking
   • View type: dashboard
   • Edit view options
     • View entries
       • Exercises quantity
       • Exercises duration
   • Edit display options
     • icon: dumbbell

Mind Tracking App

Wealth Tracking App

This tutorial assumes that Google Sheet - Wealth tracking spreadsheet tutorial has been completed.

Tracking your transactions

Setting up the data

1. In the Data navigation section, select the + to add new data
2. Select your Wealth spreadsheet
3. Select all the tabs (Accounts, Categories, Sub categories, Payees, Transactions)

Edit Transactions

1. Validate all data types
   • Date: Date
   • Amount: Price
   • Account: Ref to table Accounts
   • Category: Ref to table Categories
   • Sub category: Ref to table Sub categories
   • Payee: Ref to table Payees
   • Description: LongText
   • Tax related: Yes/No
2. Validate all initial values
   • Date: TODAY()
   • All others should be empty
3. Add virtual column
   • End of month: Date
     • App formula: EOMONTH([Date], 0)
     • Use long date formats
4. Edit formating (Click on the pencil on the left of the column)
   • Date
     • Use long date format
   • Tax related
     • No value: 'No' (Quotes are important else it will be in uppercase)
     • Yes value: 'Yes'

Edit Accounts

1. Validate all data types
   • Account: Text
   • Type: Enum
   • Starting amount: Price
   • Current value: Price
   • Balance: Price (Not editable since formula is in Google Sheet)
2. Edit initial values
   • Starting amount: 0
3. Edit requirements
   • Account: Required
   • Starting amount: Required
   • All others not required

Edit Sub categories

1. Validate all data types
   • Sub category: Text
   • Category: Ref to table Categories

Create the visuals

Transactions

1. In the Views section, create a new view
   • View name: Transactions
   • For this data: Transactions
   • View type: Deck
2. Edit View options
   • Sort by: Category - Ascending
   • Group by: Date - Descending
   • Group aggregate: SUM :: Amount
   • Primary header: Date
   • Secondary header: Category
   • Summary column: Amount
   • Show action bar
3. Edit display options
   • Icon: money-check-edit-alt

Accounts

1. In the Views section, create a new view
   • View name: Accounts
   • For this data: Accounts
   • View type: Deck
   • Position: Last
2. Edit View options
   • Sort by: Account - Ascending
   • Group by: Type - Descending
   • Group aggregate: SUM :: Balance
   • Primary header: Account
   • Secondary header: None
   • Summary column: Balance
   • Show action bar
3. Edit display options
   • Icon: university

App template