Before you can even estimate the difficulty you would have to find someone in need of software. Once you have found someone that requires software you must determine if you yourself can complete the project on your own. Generally that is not the case unless it is a small personal program similar to a calculator of sorts. If you can complete it yourself you must determine EXACTLY what the user wants down to the very last detail. Then you would be required to draw up some sort of plan generally a flowchart, project image, and a properties/data list. Once you propose these to your client you must then determine what your pay rate will be because if you are a single programmer on a small project they are only going to pay you hourly. This pay rate must be what you believe you are worth because people will try and talk you down to a lower price. The client will give you a deadline and you will keep a log of the hours you work on it. Once the project is complete you will want a small copyright of some sort (I use creative commons because it's free and it has the bare minimum to keep them from stealing it) make sure you put an ABOUT in the program so the user can always see that you made it. However it is very hard to find a small project like this and as far as finding one on the internet you can trust to pay you is nearly impossible. If you want to save time you can create any random program that you think is useful for anything submit it to a freeware site and set it up as a free download. If people download it enough and they like it and find it very useful remove it from freeware find a place to sell it and advertise wherever you can (preferably where the users it would be most helpful to would go) its not a stupid question because almost half of my income comes from small companies in my area needing a small timecard program or a custom calculator to keep track of payroll or reciepts easier. Just look around your area but telling you now if you are a noob make about 5 to 10 freeware programs and submit them and make sure theyre good because your clients are gonna want to see some examples before they agree to pay you.

~ Geo

~ Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive!