From a simple Deitel exercise to 500 real users in 2013
It all started with a simple exercise.
In the famous book “How to Program in C++” by the Deitels, there was an exercise where you had to guess a number the computer had in mind.
For me, as a beginner in programming, it wasn’t just an exercise—it was a spark.
I had just started learning PHP and was looking for a way to build something real with it.
That Deitel exercise kept swirling around in my head until I thought:
Why not turn this idea into an actual game on the web?
Back then, I occasionally played simple online games—racing, puzzles—that probably prepared my mind subconsciously to create a web-based game.
And that’s how, in 2013, I sat down and built the first website of my life: 1000 Numbers.
The archive version is still accessible on the internet.
All Handmade, All Real
I built the entire site using just pure PHP, MySQL, JS, HTML. mostly tables for layout.
No frameworks, no tutorials, no structure. Everything was hardcoded and messy. But it worked. And more importantly:
“Building it gave me a deep sense of satisfaction and internal fulfillment. I truly enjoyed every line of code I wrote.”
The First Game: Number Guessing
The game’s story was simple: the player had fallen into a digital world and had to escape by guessing the secret number held in the robots’ minds.
The game started with a click on the “Play” button. The fewer guesses it took, the higher your score—from 1000 points for a first-try guess, down to zero after 10+ attempts.
From One Game to a Platform
The game turned out to be more engaging than I expected.
Within just two months, over 500 users had registered.
Many people liked the scoring system and the competitive feeling. The positive feedback motivated me to keep going.
I began adding more games:
- Timer game
- Reflex game
- Fruit-eating game
- The Stars game
- Secret Numbers (easy and hard)
- Finder, Similarities, and a professional user leveling system
Everything was interconnected: scores, levels, rewards, hidden rooms, and even a leaderboard.
If you reached level 21, you earned the title “Master Conqueror of the Site” and your name was recorded forever.
More Than Just an Exercise
“1000 Numbers” wasn’t just an exercise for me.
It was my first experience building a product.
Through it, I learned how to bring an idea to life, deal with real users, gather feedback, build systems, and design user experience—before I even knew what UX meant.
And today, after years of building serious systems, I can still proudly say:
It all started with that simple Deitel exercise.
