• Speaker: Mariatta
  * Room: Room 250
  * Time: Fri Oct 23, 09:40 am – 10:10 am

• Format: Talk (30 min)
  * Difficulty: Intermediate
  * Track: Cloud and Infrastructure
  * Additional Tags: Python, Django, Self-Hosting, Privacy, SaaS
  * Experience: Python Core Developer and community leader with 15+ years experience; PSF Community Service award recipient and Microsoft MVP 2026.

Why build your own infrastructure when there are existing SaaS products out there? While many “free” tools exist, they often come with hidden costs: accepting third-party cookies, having your data used for training, or paying for essential powerful features.

In this talk, Mariatta walks through the creation of her “secret codes”—a suite of open-source Python web apps built on Django, including a QR code generator, scheduling calendar, community feedback surveys, and an expense tracker. This session explores why building custom tools can be a superior alternative to SaaS, focusing on how ownership of data and code provides a level of convenience, privacy, and trust that is worth the initial effort.

Project URL: https://secretcodes.dev

Target Audience:

• Python developers
  * Privacy and data sovereignty advocates
  * Community organizers
  * Those interested in self-hosting alternatives to SaaS