A custom countdown timer built to challenge Google’s own browser implementation. Spoiler: Browsers are tough.

The Motivation: Can I beat Google?

We’ve all been there: you set a timer in Google Search, switch tabs, and suddenly realize it’s been 15 minutes and you never heard the alarm. This happens because modern browsers aggressively throttle background processes to save energy, often pausing or delaying timers.

I built this timer specifically to see if I could create a more reliable web-based countdown with a better visual feedback system.

The Reality Check

Building this was a massive learning experience in browser limitations. I quickly realized why Google’s timer fails: background process restrictions are a "final boss" for web developers. While my app features a sleek countdown animation and custom alerts, it honestly faces the same background-sync challenges as the original.

Instead of hiding this, I keep this project in my portfolio as a reminder of my deep dive into Web Workers, Background Tasks, and the reality of developing for the modern web ecosystem.