# Code, Create and Care

> Code, Create and Care is the website and YouTube channel of Joseph Richard, a software developer, author and creator. Tagline: "A more thoughtful tech life. Build things. Test ideas. Share what actually happens." Half build log, half life log: practical videos on software, side projects, AI tools and the process of making things, plus the business decisions, creative detours and real-life moments behind them.

The channel has three content pillars:

- **Code**: websites, software, automation and troubleshooting. Projects and tools built out in the open, with the code behind them.
- **Create**: AI, YouTube, animation, books and products. Ideas tested in public, from the first rough sketch to the shipped thing.
- **Care**: scam prevention and informed technology decisions. The honest parts too: what things cost, and why they're worth it.

A recurring theme is building useful things for $0 with AI tools such as Claude, and owning the code instead of paying for subscriptions.

## About Joseph Richard

Joseph Richard is a software developer in the Greater Chicago Area with about 30 years of experience, 24+ of them in Java. He has built enterprise systems for capital markets (10+ years), health insurance (8+ years) and manufacturing, including financial messaging (FIX and SWIFT) and EDI integration. His experience covers Java, Spring Boot, Jakarta EE, AWS, Google Cloud, Kubernetes, Docker, OpenShift, React, Angular, and IBM i / RPG. He is a Sun Certified Java Programmer and an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner.

Through Code, Create and Care he builds products, tests AI and digital tools, writes books, and shares what works, what breaks and what he learns. He also writes about the practical side of AI for small businesses: what's worth automating, getting online stores ready for AI shopping agents, and keeping a person in charge of approving work that affects customers, money or a live site.

- [Full About page](https://codecreatecare.com/about/): bio, experience, certifications, books and contact.
- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephrichard)
- [Books by Joseph Richard](https://josephrichardauthor.com/)

## Main pages

- [Home](https://codecreatecare.com/): What the channel covers, the latest featured video, and the email newsletter signup.
- [About Joseph Richard](https://codecreatecare.com/about/): Who runs Code, Create and Care, his experience, certifications, books and how to get in touch.
- [Videos](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/): Every video with a written summary, key takeaways, chapters and the tools used.
- [Links](https://codecreatecare.com/links/): Every link in one place: latest video, social profiles, books by Joseph Richard, contact email and newsletter signup.
- [Sponsor Media Kit](https://codecreatecare.com/mediakit/): Audience, content pillars and sponsorship options for brands that want to work with the channel.
- [Sponsor Media Kit (PDF)](https://codecreatecare.com/assets/CodeCreateCare_Sponsor_Media_Kit_Updated.pdf): Downloadable version of the media kit.

<!-- videos:start (generated by videos/build-videos.mjs) -->
## Videos

Every video has its own page on this site with a summary, key takeaways, chapters and (where available) the full transcript. All videos: https://codecreatecare.com/videos/

- [How to Keep Your Coding Skills When AI Writes the Code](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/keep-coding-skills-when-ai-writes-code/) (Code, 5:42, Nov 1, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC4XjJ7uNN4)): After about 30 years as a software developer, mostly in Java, I noticed I was spending more time approving AI-written code than working through the decisions behind it. This video is about comprehension debt, the gap between what your system does and what you can actually explain about it, and how to keep your skills sharp without giving up AI.
- [I used Claude AI to replace Linktree & Carrd, it saved me $199 per year](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/replace-linktree-and-carrd-with-claude/) (Code, 9:55, Oct 26, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oarMFSs-b4g)): Linktree and Carrd were costing me $199 a year, so I replaced both with a links page I built with Claude, and I own the code. I show every step, including the parts that took more than one prompt, from the first brief in Claude to the finished page at codecreatecare.com/links with a QR code and Google Analytics 4 tracking.
- [Update website with Claude Agent and Antigravity — here's the before and after.](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/update-website-with-claude-code-and-antigravity/) (Code, 4:55, Oct 19, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX3l0WzqlYs)): My website was missing my videos, so I had Claude Code add them. Working inside Antigravity with the development server running, I add a featured video section and give my Media Kit PDF its own page, showing the actual prompts I typed and checking each result in the browser.
- [I made Motion Graphics Inside Claude - (No After Effects)](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/motion-graphics-in-claude/) (Create, 5:14, Oct 19, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjCmESF_f7A)): I built a title, a counter and a progress bar from one Claude prompt, with no After Effects, and it looked perfect until I changed my voiceover by two seconds and everything drifted. This video shows what broke and the three rules I now use to keep motion graphics modular and timed to narration.
- [I built my website with Claude & Antigravity—Then Made It Mine](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/build-website-with-claude-and-antigravity/) (Code, 7:10, Oct 10, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0joHrZFPXY)): I built this website with Claude working as an agent inside Antigravity, starting from one YouTube banner and one prompt. It worked fast, but it didn't feel like my website. I recreate the original build, then show the three human decisions that turned the generated first version into my site.
- [The faceless channel mistake that makes Creators quit in 90 days](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/faceless-channel-niche-mistake/) (Create, 7:25, Oct 9, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3pxne1xWNY)): The faceless channel mistake that makes creators quit is picking a niche just for views. I made that mistake and burned out before video five. This video covers the three questions I ask now and a simple 10-idea test to find a faceless niche you'll still be making videos about at month three.
- [How to Make Consistent AI Characters (What Actually Works)](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/consistent-ai-characters/) (Create, 6:03, Oct 4, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfehfIADREo)): While turning my children's book, Meet the Forest Friends, into an animated series, the same AI character kept coming back with a different face. What fixed it wasn't a better prompt but a better process. I walk through that workflow in Google Flow on one real scene, including the edit that gave me an extra bunny.
- [Stop Paying $50/mo for ConvertKit: Build a $0 System Instead](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/free-email-capture-google-sheets-apps-script/) (Code, 7:42, Sep 28, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5GkR9cH43I)): Instead of paying for an email service before I had a single subscriber, I built my own email capture system for $0. I build a real signup form for my website, using a Google Sheet for storage and Google Apps Script as the backend, with AI as a coding assistant, then test it end to end the way a real visitor would.
- [I spent 30 days on AI videos and got 71 views. Here's what I did wrong](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/30-days-faceless-ai-channel-results/) (Create, 6:09, Aug 1, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDXe8XnSgh4)): I built a faceless AI YouTube channel from scratch in 30 days: seven videos, every tool free, $0 spent. It got 71 views. In the same 30 days, this channel, where I talked about building it, got 8,755 views. These are the real numbers and the mistakes I made before I recorded a single video.
- [Faceless Channel, nothing but FREE AI Tools | What Works, What Doesn't](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/free-ai-tools-faceless-channel/) (Create, 3:38, Jul 24, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaFzX0NnbRc)): I spent 30 days building a faceless YouTube channel with nothing but free AI tools: no budget, no camera, no editing skills. This is the honest breakdown of the three tools that wasted my time, the two that earned their place, and the stack I landed on. No affiliate links and no sponsor.
- [I Wasted $300 on Facebook Ads, Here's What I Learned](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/facebook-ads-ai-workflow/) (Care, 7:26, Jul 12, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41akqVuANUM)): I lost $300 on a single Meta (Facebook) ad campaign because I didn't have a system. This video shares the three-step AI workflow I built afterward to fix failing ads, aimed at creators and small business owners without a big marketing budget or an agency.
- [I Automated My Etsy Shop With AI](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/automate-etsy-listings-with-ai/) (Create, 13:37, Jul 6, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRFSUJLD4tI)): I opened an Etsy shop for the things I make, with nine products, a full-time job and no marketing budget. This is the raw, unedited version of how I list a product with one free AI prompt that reads the actual product file and writes an optimized title and description for Etsy, Gumroad or Shopify.
- [How I'm Making a Cartoon Without Knowing How to Draw](https://codecreatecare.com/videos/make-a-cartoon-without-drawing/) (Create, 2:59, Jul 5, 2026; [watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFNd_iBjPfw)): I can't draw and I've never taken a design class, but I made my own animated children's series, Whispering Woods, starring Bella the rabbit, Benny the badger and Sammy the squirrel. I made it with AI in Google Flow, and one trick kept the characters looking the same in every scene.
<!-- videos:end -->

## Books by Joseph Richard

- [Don't Get Scammed](https://www.dontgetscammed.site/): A plain-language guide to spotting the scams targeting everyday people, and the simple habits that stop them.
- [Forest Friends](https://www.forestfriendsstorybooks.com/): A read-aloud picture book for ages 3 to 8 about Benny the bunny finding the courage to say hello.
- [All books](https://josephrichardauthor.com/): Every book by Joseph Richard.

## Channels and profiles

- [YouTube](https://youtube.com/@codecreatecare): Main channel, new videos regularly.
- [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@codecreatecare)
- [Instagram](https://instagram.com/codecreatecare)
- [X (Twitter)](https://x.com/codecreatecare)
- [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/CodeCreateAndCare)
- [Pinterest](https://www.pinterest.com/codecreatecare/)
- [LinkedIn (Joseph Richard)](https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephrichard)

## Contact

- Email: joseph.richard@codecreatecare.com
- Sponsorships and partnerships: see the [Sponsor Media Kit](https://codecreatecare.com/mediakit/).

## Optional

- [Privacy Policy](https://codecreatecare.com/privacy/)
- [Disclaimer](https://codecreatecare.com/disclaimer/)