building incinote
about a month ago, my chrome extension got published in the google chrome web store. it was my first time ever experimenting with an application of that kind, built entirely over the last christmas holiday.
it started with a simple frustration. i wanted a clean way to organize my chats and brainstorming sessions on ChatGPT and other LLM products into actionable notes. unfortunately, OpenAI does not provide direct API access to your web UI chat history. i could either copy the chats and find a way to have it organized elsewhere or build a bridge. then came the epiphany.
i would need a simple Chrome extension that sits right next to any LLM web application, reads the active viewport's innerHtml and forward the contents to a server that can parse & return the structured notes. i quickly fledged out a simple json schema enough to guide the llm and extract relevant information i think i would want from a brainstorming session, then created a simple api endpoint on the server, a manifest for the extension alongside a sidebar and a simple ui file with a analyze button in a different directory that i was able to unpack on chrome— all running locally on my machine.
it worked exactly as intended. a few days later, i added toggle logic to switch between the default analysis schema and an "Explainer Mode" i wrote to break down dense topics across the web. business analysis, study, and exam prep modes quickly followed.
once the prototype was stable, i shared it with a group of friends for a small focus test. the feedback was immediate, with the job application endpoint getting the most traffic—providing me with the base idea of what i want an extended product to look like.
the marketing site went live earlier this year and the extension got approved after a few days submitting and waiting out the review. at the moment, there is no grand corporate plan. i've structured it as a lean SaaS: a few versatile modes are completely free to use directly in the extension, while the full suite and a deep user dashboard sit behind a paywall.
incinote works primarily as a contextual job application assistant. it evaluates complex job roles and ads against your profile, remembers your resume details and preferences, and helps you prepare sharper applications and mock interviews, other modes are secondary in supporting roles.