All of my business projects I count time so I can tell what is profitable. My personal projects I don’t they just grow on my spare time. They are just about quality and show pieces.
As they say, time is money, i like to keep track of my time, but sometimes time just flies on by... it depends on the project i'm doing, and the preferences of the client. Sometimes they'd rather pay an hourly rate, and other times they want a set quote. Sometimes the emphasis on time takes away a more personal approach from interaction with my client base, so it sometimes isn't so important to me
We rarely charge by the hour. Sometimes things take longer if you run into problems, and in my mind, it is not fair to the client to pay more. I prefer by the project. tlcmkt