New datamodel in preview

Some of you would like to modify the layout of a lab freezer after it has been created, as whole shelves can be taken up by a bag, shelves need to be split in half, etc. To make this possible, the underlying datamodel needed a rewrite.

The new data model is now complete, though the feature that lets you redesign an existing fridge layout is still in development (more details below). Other parts of the tool have been updated however.

Because this is a fundamental change, it hasn’t been released publicly yet. I’ve set up a preview environment where you can test the new version. This is a sandbox, with your real data as of Sept. 16, so any changes you make won’t affect your real data.

What else is new in the preview?

The main updates apart from the new datamodel are:

• Polished layout: everything looks a lot cleaner and consistent
• Daily backups for pro users: from today on, DrFreezr automatically exports each fridge and its contents at midnight (CET). You’ll find a link to the backup page at the bottom of your dashboard.
• Search bugs have been ironed out.
• Dropped the “large” visualisation: it saw little use, so it’s gone. (If you still need it, just let me know.)
• Filtering has been made more intuitive.
• Fridge delete confirmation: when you want to delete a fridge, DrFreezr asks for confirmation first (duh).
• Richer hover previews: Hovering over users, boxes, etc., shows more detailed previews.
• Spammers begone! Bot registrations were flooding the service and breaking the email system (invites, password resets). I’ve switched to a more robust email platform and blocked sign‑ups from common personal domains such as gmail.com, icloud.com, and similar.
• More robust database. With the new datamodel, it was time to move to a more robust database service. It provides daily snapshots and allows roll-back of data, meaning your data is even safer than before.

What’s next?

I’m continuing work on the dynamic fridge layout — it’s not in the preview version yet though — and I got down the rabbit hole of 3D visualisation.

Here’s what it looks like right now (ugly, I know; first I have to make it work before I make it prettier).

The idea is that you’ll be able to create and drag and drop sections of your fridge, expand or shrink them and see it all visualised in glorious 3D. (Next thing you know, you’ll be wearing VR goggles to inspect your fridges 🤭)