FrankenData: a browser tool that merges mismatched CSV and XLSX files and answers plain-English questions

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A developer built FrankenData for Kiroween 2026 to fix the common problem of two spreadsheets describing the same data with inconsistent column names and messy values. The tool proposes how to match columns, cleans the data, and joins everything into one typed DuckDB table. Users can then query it in plain English, and all processing runs locally in the browser so rows never leave the tab. The author describes building it spec-first with Kiro, working through requirements, design and task files in small checkpointed batches. The post also explains the steering docs and hooks used to keep the agent within strict rules, notably a read-only SQL validator that guards against destructive queries.

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ProgrammingDEV Community ·

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