March 2020 Summaries

PostHog's latest release notes highlight several updates and new features aimed at enhancing user experience and analytics capabilities. The introduction of "stickiness" allows users to better understand how often unique users return to specific actions, providing insights into application or website engagement. A new Funnel Builder has been streamlined for simplicity and efficiency, while improvements to events include clearer property filters and the addition of 'isnot' and 'does not contain' options. Performance has been boosted by upgrading from Parcel to Webpack, and API key placement has been improved for easier access. The team acknowledges community contributions, notably in k8s documentation, and invites user feedback to continue improving PostHog. The company is adjusting to border closures by ensuring support across US and European time zones, while team members share fitness tips to stay active during restrictions.

PostHog introduces a new naming convention and weekly tagged releases, reflecting updates in their latest version. The company has decided to allow unlimited users to align with their generous MIT license, and now supports multiple domains in one instance for users with several projects. Key updates include enhanced actions creation, allowing users to set actions more easily, and the ability to delete user data, addressing GDPR concerns. Performance updates and bug fixes are prioritized in each release, such as improvements in event loading speed and fixing visual glitches in Safari. The team is focused on recognizing contributors and encouraging community feedback, offering merchandise as an incentive. As PostHog transitions to a remote setup, influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, they utilize tools like GitLab to maintain productivity, reflecting on the intense experience of their time with Y Combinator.

In their first weekly roundup post, PostHog shares updates on recent developments and community interactions, including new features like filtering action trends graphs, exact URL matching for actions, and the ability to filter paths by date, which enhance user experience by offering more intuitive data analysis and easier-to-read dashboards. The post highlights a request for integrating with Elixir, emphasizing their commitment to expanding integrations beyond existing ones with languages like JS, Node, and Python. It also acknowledges noteworthy contributions such as the "Filter paths by timestamp" pull request and mentions intriguing repositories like Newscatcher and open-source projects like openpilot. Additionally, the company shares news about its move to San Francisco, its blog reaching the front page of Hacker News, and the launch of a YouTube channel aimed at making their features more accessible to users.

PostHog's launch on Hacker News was met with positive feedback, resulting in over 800 stars on GitHub within a week and significant user engagement, including over 200 sign-ups and integration by several businesses. The company initially invested $1,000 in marketing and learned the importance of appropriate tagging for discovery. Their current focus is on user retention through personal interactions, such as attending meetings in person and maintaining informal communication channels like Slack or WhatsApp. The team divides responsibilities to maintain efficiency, with clear roles in product development, marketing, and user feedback. Weekly reviews and a focus on building an open-source community are central to their strategy, aiming to incorporate user feedback into product development rapidly.