The Birth of a Seamless Integration: How the Plugin for TRMNL Came to Be
A few weeks ago, one of our engineers, Andy Yates, received an email at his personal address. It was from the team at TRMNL, who make beautifully minimal e-ink displays with a thriving plugin ecosystem behind them. And by happy accident, our public API was about a week away from going live.
Introduction
Andy had just gotten his TRMNL and was having fun building plugins for it. TRMNL screens are built around a lovely idea: your desk should show you the handful of things you care about, calmly, without demanding anything back. People run their calendars, weather, to-do lists, and hundreds of community-built plugins on them.
An ambient display changes how often you notice your queue.
Key Takeaways
- TRMNL's platform hosts the plugin entirely on their side, ensuring no server maintenance is required from Andy.
- Ikraam from the TRMNL team worked closely with Andy to improve and simplify the setup flow of the plugin.
The Journey of the Plugin
1. Conceptualization
He started building a private plugin for his TRMNL, which showed queue counts and recently sent or upcoming posts, refreshed automatically.
2. Public Release
3. Hands-On Support
Ikraam from the TRMNL team worked directly with Andy to add new features and simplify the setup flow. This kind of hands-on support is a big part of why their plugin ecosystem is as vibrant as it is.
4. Public API Integration
Giving It Away
To mark the launch, we're running a giveaway with TRMNL from July 13 to 20. Entering takes three steps:
- Like the post
- Repost it
We announce the winners on July 27. If you enter and don't win, there's still a consolation: TRMNL is offering a bufferxtrmnl code for $10 off any device, live from July 27 through September 7.
Full terms are linked in the first comment of the giveaway post.
Conclusion
It transforms how users interact with their content schedule by providing a physical, ambient display that gently reminds them of upcoming posts. With hands-on support from both sides and easy integration through the public providers repo, this collaboration showcases the power of community-driven innovation.
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