Pic Puller: The Instagram Plugin

I built a server-side app for Burger King 🍔 that integrated their feed into a custom Tumblr theme I created. The project was to create a blog from their head chef, but when he left the company just two weeks after we'd launched the project, we took the site offline. I took the bones of that project and re-engineered it as Pic Puller, a commercial CMS plugin. 

The plugin was used on hundreds of commercial and personal websites. I sold it for the next eight years.

Pic Puller was built with PHP. It included support for multiple users and a robust caching system to continue displaying images and videos from Instagram when the user's API limit had been reached or when the API was down.

This is alt text
The authorization screen in Pic Puller.
This is alt text
Pic Puller for Craft CMS homepage

The Pic Puller plugin has been retired but lives on in its GitHub repo archive.

Project Highlight: Pic Puller

  • Initial Engagement: Commissioned by Burger King, I embarked on a journey to seamlessly integrate their feed into a bespoke Tumblr theme, aiming to provide a platform for their head chef's blog.
  • Unexpected Turn: Fate threw a curveball when the head chef departed soon after launch, prompting the site's takedown.
  • Reinvention: Leveraging the foundational elements of the initial project, I meticulously re-imagined and crafted Pic Puller, a commercial CMS plugin.
  • Widespread Adoption:
    • Versatile Usage: Pic Puller found its place in hundreds of diverse platforms, ranging from commercial ventures to personal websites.
    • Commercial Success: With its robust features and reliability, I successfully commercialized and sold Pic Puller for an impressive eight-year span.
  • Technical Blueprint:
    • Core Development: Engineered using PHP, ensuring adaptability and performance.
    • Multi-user Support: Designed to cater to multiple users simultaneously, broadening its application scope.
    • Resilient Caching Mechanism: Incorporated a caching system, ensuring uninterrupted display of Instagram images and videos. This proved invaluable during instances of API downtimes or when user-specific API limits were exhausted.