Welcome
Hi there, I'm Michael Bailey. I'm a software engineer with a deep interest in user-focused, technology and engineering. I enjoy building tools to assist myself, and others, with my other hobbies and interests.
This site is a place for me to share projects I'm working on, write about technologies I'm learning, and put into practice my learnings.
Projects
Here’s a selection of personal projects I’ve built or continue to work on. They aren’t meant to be a complete list, but each one solves a problem I’ve personally encountered or adds functionality I found missing on my own devices. I'll be writing up stories about some of the projects, detailing what I find to be the best things I learnt during the creation of the projects
Gym Log Book
https://github.com/michael-bailey/gym-log-book
Gym Log Book is a full native Android app I built to help log my strength training progress. It features structured navigation, local data persistence, with plans to display graphs and support more exercise types.
When I started at the gym, I wanted a way of logging my progress. Whilst I found lots of apps that could help with this, I found most of them to have complex functionality, or had lacking UX. So I decided to create my own app.
After starting with some Apple shortcuts, I got the basic idea of what I wanted to include. Settings for free weights, or machines; Auto complete for sets; a list and possibly graphs for progress. All of which expanded my knowledge of Android app development.
Compass
https://github.com/michael-bailey/Compass}
Compass is a simple Android app that shows the user's direction using the device's built-in sensors. It follows the Material 3 design system for a clean and modern look.
I made this app because I wanted a quick and easy way to access a compass without opening Google Maps. It’s meant to be lightweight and simple, with a clear interface that does one thing well.
This project allowed me to explore lower-level drawing APIs in Jetpack Compose, handle real-time sensor data from the magnetometer and accelerometer, and apply linear algebra concepts to determine accurate device orientation.
Overall, building a compass app was a great project. It allowed me to use low level Android features, like the accelerometer, and magnetometer. How they can link in with more UI oriented constructs